Regional Police Training Centre Expands Capacity for Police Recruits, Unveiling Renovations and New Construction Plans - Commandant Rodney Archer

The Regional Police Training Centre is set to significantly increase its capacity for police recruits, according to Commandant Rodney Archer.

Speaking at the graduation ceremony for Initial Training Course No.148, Archer unveiled plans for major renovations and new construction at the 68-year-old Paragon facility.

“It is now intended that the suspended renovations of dormitory one and the female’s dorm will commence in the last quarter of this year,” the RPTC commandant announced. “In addition, two modern-day dormitories will be constructed on lands to the east of dormitories two and three.”

The expansion will include a female-only dormitory, with the new facilities expected to accommodate approximately 60 additional students. Archer explained that this development “will better position the training centre in assisting The Barbados Police Service to reduce its vacancy deficit”.

The announcement comes as the centre graduated 51 recruits from its longest-ever training course, spanning 32 weeks. Over the past year, the police college has conducted 23 training initiatives for 522 registered participants.

Archer emphasised the robustness of the training regime, which includes modules designed in collaboration with the Barbados Community College. The curriculum covers a wide range of subjects, including Human Rights, Constitutional Law, Sociology of Crime, Psychology, and Police Duties.

But the commandant also highlighted challenges faced during the training, noting a significant reduction in instructional staff compared to previous decades.

“In this instance, there were four instructors and a quartermaster on staff, and as fortune would have it, in the later stages of the course two instructors fell ill or were injured,” Archer revealed.

Despite these difficulties, the graduating class included standout performers. Police Constable Johnathan Peter was recognised as the Best Recruit, boasting impressive qualifications including six Grade One passes at the advanced CXC CAPE level and a first-class honours degree in forensic science from the University of Kent.

Archer hailed PC Peter’s achievements as “testimony that the police service can still attract quality”, underscoring the continued appeal of law enforcement careers to highly qualified individuals.

Built during the colonial era in 1956 with funding from the British government’s Colonial and Development Welfare Organisation, the RPTC was designed to facilitate joint training for police forces from Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, and the Windward and Leeward Islands. The initiative was aimed at modernising police training and promoting uniformity across the British West Indies. It also addressed the limitations faced by individual islands in conducting their own training programmes.

Even as newly independent nations started their own police academies, the RPTC has continued to provide specialised training for several officers from throughout the Commonwealth Caribbean, including some British Overseas Territories. (SB)