As of April, every single neighbourhood in London will benefit from a dedicated policing team comprising police officers and police community support officers.

The roll out of Safer Neighbourhoods is "the greatest development in community policing London has seen in the past 30 or 40 years", according to the Commissioner of the MPS, Sir Ian Blair. The purpose of the teams is to provide local style policing whereby the officers work with local people and partners to solve locally identified crime and disorder problems, usually quality of life concerns or visible anti-social behaviour.

Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs) play an integral role in the Safer Neighbourhoods teams, primarily to engage with Londoners to better understand their local needs. They were first introduced to London in 2002 to provide the city with an increased visible police presence and to reassure the public. PCSO Kiran Cheema, who works on a Safer Neighbourhood Team in Newham, said: "We help reduce community tensions and the fear of crime. Being there day in, day out reassures the public and that's very important."

PCSOs don't have the same powers as police officers, such as powers of arrest, but they do have the power to detain people while they wait for back up.

PCSOs provide support to the police officers on the teams and spend a lot of their time patrolling, talking to the local community and gathering intelligence. Where possible, they attend to matters and deal with problems not requiring police powers.

Because of the roll out of Safer Neighbourhoods, the MPS is looking to recruit a large number of PCSOs over the course of the next financial year, most of whom will be allocated to Safer Neighbourhood teams. PCSO Cheema explains why she became a PCSO: "I consider myself to be a people sort of person and didn't want to do the normal nine to five."

"Being on a small team where you only deal with your ward is great; everyone gets to know you and comes to you with their problems. Its very satisfying helping people out and making a personal difference in the community."

Though the training equips PCSOs with certain tools they need for the role, there are basic qualities and eligibility criteria potential candidates must meet. They should be a team player, able to act on their own initiative and focused on the needs of the local community. PCSOs often deal with challenging situations so they should have good communication skills and be able to remain calm and approachable. London is made up of many different communities therefore the role requires someone who shows consideration for others and respect for diversity.

There are no formal educational requirements, however you will need to have a reasonable standard of English. You need to be at least 18, and of good character as the position carries responsibility and trust. If you are successful in your PCSO application you will receive four weeks and two days classroom based training (soon to be extended to seven weeks). You will then receive further on the job training.

Being a PCSO carries a number of benefits such as a generous basic pay package and annual leave entitlement, free travel on London's buses and the possibility of flexible working hours. PCSO's receive a salary of up to £25,000 depending on location and shift disturbance allowance.

Anyone interested in becoming a PCSO should go to www.metpolicecareers.co.uk or call the recruitment hotline on 0845 727 2212. For more information about your local Safer Neighbourhood team, log onto www.met.police.uk/saferneighbourhoods.