Constable Shonosuke Deguchi, who’s with the Police Ethnic Liaison team, visited English Language Partners’ Christchurch centre to share tips on safety at home and on New Zealand’s roads.

Constable Deguchi told people how to ensure their homes are secure from burglars and shared information on typical crime trends in New Zealand.  

Learners grabbed the opportunity to practise their English, with everyone asking Constable Deguchi at least one question.

Not only did they get in ‘real time’ learning, the class also gained confidence speaking to a police officer. Something many of us could benefit from, no doubt!

In some learners’ countries, there isn’t a high level of trust in the police, so this was also an excellent chance to experience the helpfulness of New Zealand’s police force. The trust gained was an obvious great outcome, with everyone keen to have a photo taken with Constable Deguchi.

Class members were enthusiastic in their feedback!

Sadia, who’s from Somalia, says there were great reminders in amongst all the helpful tips.  “It was good to remember to lock all doors and windows at night.”

Labeeba, originally from Iraq, enjoyed the class and says it was useful “to remember to always wear your seatbelt when driving.”  

Wendy Nelson, who teaches the ESOL Intensive class says she was impressed. “Shonosuke graded his language to communicate with our elementary-level learners.”

It really boosted their confidence being able to understand him clearly.

Constable Deguchi also talked about the support for new recruits from diverse backgrounds who come into the police force.

One learner, who’s keen to join the police in the future, took on board the Constable’s advice that “you need to have good writing skills.” He's now realised that the job requires a lot of incident and report writing.  

So we now have one even more motivated learner – studying hard with a clear goal in mind!