Police officers are to get help in the form of patrol and community support officers, who will be tasked with building up relations within communities, defusing threats and responding to low-level offences and antisocial behaviour.

Patrol and Community Support Officers (PCSO) will not have the full authority of police officers but will be eligible to join the force as constables after five years in the role.

They must be Maltese adult citizens, speak Maltese and English, completed secondary school and pass a medical fitness test. Salaries start from €16,130 per year, rising to a maximum of €19,053. Applications close on November 22. 

The PCSO recruitment drive was announced in a statement issued by the Home Affairs Ministry on Saturday. The statement provided no detail about how many PCSOs are being recruited or where they will be deployed. 

The PCSO plan was first announced in the Budget 2024 speech, when PCSOs were described as “a link between the public, including the neighbourhood watch, the Police and other strategic partners.”

A similar system was unveiled specifically for Valletta earlier this year. 

Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri said the PCSOs were based on a similar structure within UK law enforcement and would help district police patrol localities.

He urged anyone interested in making Malta safer to apply for a job as a PCSO, noting that successful officers would progress to becoming fully-fledged police officers.

“This is a natural progression from community policing, which is now nationwide,” the minister said.

“We will also continue renovating police stations, with some stations now offices for community officers.”