konferencia@bpsz.hu
Participation in the conference is subject to registration.
Building Safer Communities through Volunteers and Complementary Policing
This international symposium returns for its third edition —after London and Edinburgh—to unite global voices on volunteers delivering public safety. In Budapest 2026, the symposium brings together law enforcement leaders, police volunteers, policymakers, researchers, and community safety practitioners.
This event also welcomes countries and agencies exploring volunteers in policing for the first time, offering inspiration, adaptable frameworks, and proven strategies.
Purpose and Terms of Reference
Purpose
The International Symposium returns for its third edition – after London and Edinburgh – to unite global voices on the role of volunteers and complementary policing in delivering public safety.
The event in Budapest is a key milestone in our wider global movement to bring together a policy community around volunteer policing worldwide, build the evidence base, and create a strategic international vision for the future of voluntarism and complementary policing. At the hub of which is the Global Foundation for Community Safety Volunteering.
As with previous conferences, this is an international partnership of several key partners. Central to that is our Hungarian colleagues at the university and the Civil Guard, who are key to hosting our event and making it a success. Key international partners such as VLEOA, and IPSCJ, are also critical to making the event a success.
The event is an opportunity to showcase the world-leading exemplar of the Hungarian Civil Guard, and to engage and learn from the local practice in Hungary. We will organise the two days to give ample opportunity to do that.
Outcome
The conference will bring people together internationally at a scale not previously achieved, in a field that has historically developed in highly isolated ways across countries and that tends to struggle to achieve strategic engagement in policing.
It brings people together with purpose. The Symposium will 1) launch the Global Observatory, 2) showcase best practice and innovation from around the world, with the aim of then following through to bring that together through the new Observatory, 3) establish a new global network for police youth volunteering, 4) share and develop the huge potential of specialist volunteering worldwide, 5) help set and shape the research agenda internationally, and 6) help project the role and value of volunteers internationally and strategically across policing globally, and set a strategic vision internationally for the future.
Content
The content of the event will:
Style
The event will have a fast-moving, interactive, informal style. The programme will mainly be split into small, dynamic, focused groups, presentations will be short and sharp, and the emphasis will be on discussion and debate.
The conference will end with an agreement on ‘next steps’ that we will take globally, to develop the agenda of voluntarism and complementary policing together. It is hoped that every single session of the Symposium will contribute in some tangible way to this.
There will be space for delegates to meet and engage one another. This is not the style of event where people sit in a large hall all day, listening to long speeches. It is also not an event that, in an unstructured way, shares “how we do it in our country…” – instead, the event is themed and focused on the ‘takeaway’ for volunteer programme leaders. Focused on innovation and new learning and translation across international boundaries.
Parallel Sessions
There will be sessions specifically focused on our two key themes: specialist volunteering and youth volunteering.
Sessions will also focus thematically on different aspects across the volunteering and complementary policing agenda. The precise content and focus will form as attendees confirm they are coming, but will likely include some themes such as: