Nicole, 16, snorts with derision when a police sergeant asks her if she is able to role-play an “ugly” stop and search.

“I live in Waltham Forest, of course I know how that goes, I see it every day,” she says. Nicole rough-handles her “victim”, a black teenage participant, whom she throws against the wall while yelling expletives at him. She then forces him to take off his shoes without good reason.

When he asks for identification and an explanation for the search, she laughs and warns that he will find himself in the lockup if he “gives lip”.

Nicole claims that she has been often treated in such a way by police and it makes her feel “like dirt”.

Sergeant Colin Geddes, a police recruiting officer, turns the tables. How do Nicole and her friends behave when they are approached for a search?

“We probably laugh at the police, might call them names,” she admits. “Won’t make it easy for them, that’s for sure.”

He points out that respect is a two-way street: “The police don’t like it when they’re being treated like that, it doesn’t help the situation.”

Nicole agrees that both sides could handle the search better: “I suppose I haven’t thought about it too much from their point of view before.”

Sergeant Geddes, who is running the programme at a school in Waltham Forest, East London, said that many participants had never previously considered the perspective of the police. “This makes them think about the way they behave. We find it really helps calm things down on the street,” he said.

Mark, 16, claimed that although he had never been in trouble he was stopped regularly and was resentful and angry towards the police.

But after the role-play and discussion, he admitted that he had acted too aggressively when being approached by officers. As he now better understood the reasons for stop and search, he would be more willing to cooperate in future.

He added: “It’s good to see the person behind the uniform, they seem okay. They’ve made me remember that they’re only doing it to help me and my friends. If it stops one of my mates being stabbed on their way home, then its a good thing.”

Ciara, 20, used to run with a girl gang in East London. She got her life back on track after seeing friends sent to young offender institutions, and said she attended the workshop to try to get her point across to younger people.

“They see the police and they laugh, they act out. I want to show them that they’re not that bad and that we can work together. It is going to take a long time, but it has to happen.”

Mohammed, 17, has never been in trouble with the police but is regularly subjected to stop and search. He claims it is because of his Muslim background – a belief that was strengthened when he had a gun shoved in his face by police soon after the July 7 bombings in 2005.

“Its not cool but I can’t get resentful about it, because there’s no point. All I can do is work with the police, let them know my point of view, and hopefully it will achieve something.”

PC Andy Hunt said that the session had highlighted how police conduct affected the community, particularly young people.

“It makes us take their feelings into account in what we do. I would have guessed they felt negative, but why and for what reasons, I would never have known. Now we can hopefully do something about that when we’re on the street,” he said.

“It’s also been helpful because now I know their slang, I know how to talk to them.”

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