The Northern Ireland Policing Board is looking for members of the local community to volunteer to check how people in custody are being dealt with by police.

The Custody Visiting Scheme, previously known as lay visiting, is administered and supported by the Policing Board and is an important part of the policing structures in Northern Ireland.

The role of the custody visitor is fairly unique; they make unannounced visits to police custody suites, where people who have been arrested are held. Each team has between four or seven designated police stations to visit which are equipped with a custody suite.

The purpose of their visits is to talk to detainees to find out how they have been treated and whether they have been able to access their rights and entitlements (such as the right to legal advice). They look, listen and tell the Policing Board what they have found in the custody area.

The visitors don't work alone but are appointed to a team which covers the area in which they they live. There are currently 60 custody visitors spread across four teams in Down/Armagh, North West, Tyrone/Fermanagh and Belfast/Antrim.

One of the visitors from the local team, Patrick McCourt from Strabane has been volunteering since April. 63 year old Pat, a retired retail manager and father of three, says he finds being a custody visitor rewarding and challenging.

He says, "Now that we have peace, it is wonderful to be able to state that "the welfare of those in custody is 100%" as an independent visitor, thus bringing improved social integration between the PSNI and the local population. This is one more way of spreading peace in Northern Ireland and observing that the Patten recommendations are in fact progressing and are implemented."

Custody visitors must be independent and impartial when they visit. After each visit, they write a report which tells the Policing Board how the police are running the custody area at the time of the visit and the Board uses the information to decide what action needs to taken.

Each year the Policing Board publishes a report on the work of the four teams. The most recent report from Tyrone/Fermanagh team recorded that a detainee requested that members of the team ask custody staff to contact a family member to bring their medication to the police station. Not all detainees, however, wanted to see custody visitors, as receiving a visits are not compulsory.

Pat, who recently undertook a course in mental health first aid to assist him in his role, adds, "It is important to independently assess the physical and mental wellbeing of those in custody and to check the conditions of detention to ensure the protection of the individual and their human rights. It is also important that the Board is aware of the up-to-date situations in each custody area and is given confirmation that the system is working in daily practice."

Independent custody visitors must be over 18 years old and have no direct involvement in the criminal justice system. For example, they can't be an Independent custody visitor if they are (or have ever been) employed by the police, are involved in some areas of the criminal justice system, or work for the Policing Board. This helps to keep the scheme independent.

Anyone interested in applying for or finding out more about the scheme should contact the Policing Board's Custody Visiting Scheme Administrator at the following details:

Northern Ireland Policing Board

Waterside Tower

31 Clarendon Road

Clarendon Dock

Belfast

BT1 3BG

Phone: 028 9040 8526 or 028 9040 8563

E-mail: custodyvisiting@nipolicingboard.org.uk