The Barrie Police Service is looking to replace a cadre of officers who decided to retire and left the force in 2021.
But instead of concentrating solely on rookies, Barrie police is looking to add experienced officers to its force.
While many of the force’s 250 sworn officers took advantage of an incentive program instigated by the local force, there were others who left that came as a surprise. In all, 16 officers retired, representing a significant portion of the force.
As the Barrie Police Service looks to replace those positions, recruiting efforts are focusing not just on the typical rookie approach, but rather on experienced officers.
The city force’s recruiting constable, Stephanie McKibbon, says the goal is to have the officers in place within months, ready as the local police department prepares for summer when calls for service increase.
“We are looking to bring on at least four officers. This could increase up to as high as eight,” she stated in an email to BarrieToday. “Having this experienced officer recruitment be completed by spring will allow for our newest members to aid our front-line complement as they head into the summer season as our calls for service increase over the summer months.”
The turnaround time from hiring to full deployment is much shorter for experienced officers than it is for those hired without experience.
Experienced officers trained at the Ontario Police College have already spent time with a coach officer and have experience with different types of calls and occurrences.
Those who are added to the Barrie Police Service will spend two weeks with the training unit to become familiar with the force’s procedures and policies. They will also spend four weeks with a partner to become familiar with the mobile workstation, radio procedures and the layout of the city itself.
Applications are being accepted until Feb. 27 with the goal of having the officers on the road by June.
A parallel recruitment program for new officers is aiming to add another dozen officers by fall.
“It will historically be our largest recruitment as we will be hiring 12 new recruits. Our largest class to date was in 2018 when we brought on eight new officers,” added McKibbon.
