The Romanian Ministry of Internal Affairs (MAI) has decided to set up the School Safety Police, which will help prevent and combat school violence and other threats to the safety of students and teachers.

The new School Safety Police will operate as a department of the Romanian Police and will have 266 officers, MAI Secretary of State Bogdan Despescu said on Tuesday, September 1, according to News.ro.

Despescu announced during a press conference that "a new national action plan has been drawn up to increase the safety of students and teachers and prevent juvenile delinquency in schools." In this context, the School Safety Police was created at the level of the General Inspectorate of Police. 

Bogdan Despescu also said that the new police department would improve the MAI-school-local authorities partnership. He promised "a much greater presence" of police officers in the school environment and the educational process, adding that police officers will be in permanent contact with representatives of schools, NGOs, and local authorities.

The School Safety Police, which will be operational when the new school year starts, will focus on preventive activities, such as combating drug use, juvenile violence, and human trafficking.

Irina Marica, irina.marica@romania-insider.com

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