Hampshire police enlist volunteer drone pilots to help them crack down on rural crimes

Community volunteers will soon be flying drones alongside police officers at live incidents in a bid to tackling rural crime in Hampshire.

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary has launched a new project to work alongside volunteer drone operators, believing the scheme is the first of its kind in the country.

Five volunteers have been trained and passed a bespoke drone operators' course before being placed on call to the police control room. They can then be deployed to provide aerial support during incidents such as hare coursing, poaching and non-dwelling burglaries in rural areas.

The drones will also be used to help gather evidence, while the project aims to improve the sharing of information between police and rural communities.

Inspector Stu Ross, who is leading the initiative, said: “Rural criminals cause continued misery to farmers, landowners, gamekeepers and estate owners across the county, and indeed across the country. It’s crucial that we all come together as a police service, as a partnership and as a community to tackle this.

“That’s why we have introduced this innovative project which enables us to bring the community into the heart of rural policing.

“I am incredibly grateful for the volunteers we have recruited so far, who are lending their skills to pilot drones and assist officers on the ground dealing with crimes in action.”

The pilot scheme has received £25,400 from Police and Crime Commissioner Donna Jones' Rural Initiative Fund, with Test Valley Borough Council providing matching funding. A further £34,158.05 has been provided through the Farming in Protected Landscapes programme, administered by North Wessex Downs National Landscapes.

The volunteers' skills will complement existing police technology, including police drones, mobile ANPR cameras and trail cameras. The force's Country Watch Rural Crime Task Force also has officers and staff with specialist knowledge of areas including stolen plant, heritage crime and wildlife crime.

Ms Jones said: “Rural crime is a blight on businesses and rural communities across our two counties. I am pleased to fund this drone pilot, which will help rural communities, landowners, farmers and the police work together to prevent crime.

“The drones are a great asset for rural communities. They offer a sustainable and proactive approach to tackling rural crime, which is often linked to organised crime.

“This pilot will improve the intelligence police receive and, in turn, the police response to reported incidents. If it is successful, I will roll it out across the whole police force area.

“This project will strengthen policing in rural areas alongside two other initiatives I launched, the Rural Crime Task Force and the EyesOn digital crime reporting app.”