The day might have been frosty but the welcome was certainly warm for police volunteers in north Bedfordshire on Saturday, January 15, 2012.

Special Constables, Police Cadets and civilian volunteers were out in force in Harrold, Sharnbrook and Riseley as another Operation Vision moved into swing in the villages.

Op Vision has now been going for over a year and every month volunteers from all parts of the force descend on a specified area somewhere in Bedfordshire to chat with residents and find out what their concerns are – providing advice, reassurance and information as they go.

The operation has visited specific neighbourhoods in Bedford, Luton and Dunstable, the smaller towns of central Bedfordshire and rural areas. The questionnaires and feedback from residents are fed into the local police team for the area and help to target future policing into the issues that residents have highlighted.

This is the third time that the Specials have taken sole charge of the Vision on a weekend – and the Saturday time slot also meant that lots of Police Cadets – those volunteers who can join at 15 years old – could joint the 40 Special Constables and help out too.

For some cadets it was their very first public duty in a police uniform after joining the service and helping out with talking to over 500 residents during the day really gave them a flavour for the interactive nature of policing.

“They absolutely loved it and couldn’t wait to get out and talk to people,” said Cadet co-ordinator Jo Boneham. “They really came back buzzing and got loads out of helping the residents and their older counterparts in the Special Constabulary.”

The next Operation Vision day is planned for Luton on February 16, 2012.