The Rangiora Community Patrol is recruiting, while other patrols are active in Kaiapoi and Pegasus.
Rangiora volunteers, Terence O’Grady and Christine Norton, say the patrols provide "eyes and ears" for the police, as they head out in patrol cars or monitor CCTV cameras.
Volunteers remain in their cars, observing and monitoring incidents, taking notes and feeding back to police.
The Rangiora Community Patrol is trialling a new phone app to make recording information easier.
"Some nights are quiet. There was a spate for a while of bottles being thrown around the main street,’’ Terence says.
"If we see something suspicious, we might come back around in two minutes or five minutes, or we might park up for a few minutes.
"It might be teenagers on scooters and we just keep an eye on them."
Christine added: "We might not see anything happen, but people may think twice after seeing us,
The Rangiora Community Patrol has 23 active patrollers, but with more volunteers they could provide a presence on the streets more often.
"The police want us out there as well to be visible," Terence says.
"We are not here to engage with something going on, we are the eyes and ears and we pass the information on."
"It’s the feedback I get.
"People enjoy seeing the car and the visibility.
"It kind of reflects that community is looking after community."
Doocey says the patrols are an "undervalued" resource, but it is a good way for people to give back to their community.
Volunteers always go out in pairs. Training is provided and new volunteers go out in the cars with experienced patrollers when starting out.
Community patrol members can be any age, but are subject to police vetting.
They could be retired, or young people wanting to get some experience, including those looking to apply for police training.
"We ask for one shift a month which is generally four hours," Terence says.
"It can be any time they want as long as they can find someone to go with them.
"Instead of being a keyboard warrior, come and join us."
The patrols fundraise to keep the cars on the road, including sausage sizzles and pub quizzes.
The Rangiora Community Patrol meets monthly for training and patrol updates at the Rangiora RSA.
- If you want to know more, get in touch via the Rangiora Community Patrol Facebook page or email rangiora@cpnz.org.nz
- The Kaiapoi Community Patrol can also be found on Facebook or email kaiapoi@cpnz.org.nz while the Pegasus community patrol can be contacted via the Pegasus Residents’ Group Inc - prgi@pegasusresidentsgroup.com
