Law Enforcement volunteers clock it with nearly 77 000 hours of service

17 September 2026

The City’s Law Enforcement Auxiliary cohort has wrapped yet another fruitful 12 months of service, logging 76 834,55 hours of patrols in support of their full-time counterparts. The volunteer service, now in its 13th year, has nearly 380 active members.

Auxiliary Law Enforcement officers are required to do a minimum of 16 hours of service per month or 192 hours a year.

The average for the 2025/26 financial year was 230 hours per officer.

‘The hours reflect the commitment of our volunteers, and I couldn’t be more proud of the work that they do to support our public safety efforts. We had high hopes when we first started this programme in 2013, and while not without its challenges along the way, it really has proven to be a worthwhile initiative,’ said Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security, Alderman JP Smith.

The current complement of Law Enforcement Auxiliary officers is 379 – 334 of whom are uniformed and 45 in a non-uniform capacity.

Just over 300 of the uniformed officers are deployed to the four geographical areas within the metropole. Twenty-three others are deployed to the Auxiliary Animal Control, Marine and Rural Safety UnitS. 

In the 2025/26 financial year, the volunteers logged nearly 77 000 hours of service to complement public safety efforts.

During that time, they made 148 arrests, recovered three firearms and two imitation firearms, 104 dangerous weapons and issued 7 577 traffic fines.

The arrests include charges for the possession of contraband, dangerous weapons, possession of suspected stolen vehicles and stock theft, among others.

In a few of the more recent successes:

• On 15 August, the Area North 1 Auxiliary Team joined forces with SAPS for a joint operation in the Milnerton area that resulted in the arrest of two suspects for illegally trading in liquor. Officers confiscated more than 800 units of alcohol
• On Friday, 28 August, members attached to Area South Auxiliary Team arrested a suspect in Heideveld for the illegal possession of a firearm
• On Saturday, 29 August, auxiliary members attached to the area South and Marine Unit arrested a suspect in the Green Point area who was found in possession of numerous cell phones and bankcards, which he could not account for

The Auxiliary programme has evolved in recent years to make available opportunities to assist with administrative functions.

Currently, 45 non-uniformed volunteers fulfil this role and other support services, including IT support, community engagement and supporting crime prevention partnership programmes.

‘The volunteer programme extends our public safety arsenal, but it also provides opportunities for registered Neighbourhood Watch Members to step into a role – under supervision of qualified Law Enforcement Officers – to gain valuable experience and skills, which in turn allows them to apply for contract or even permanent positions that might become available. That way, we have the benefit of bringing people into the service who already understand the enforcement environment, so it’s a win for all involved,’ added Alderman Smith.

The requirements to apply to the Law Enforcement Auxiliary Service are outlined below:

For more information about the service and how to apply, visit the City's website.

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