British Transport Police is inviting young people aged 15+ to take part in their Hydra Project. The aim of this project is to engage with the police and understand how they work. 

British Transport Police notes its acute awareness that young people meet the police either as potential perpetrators or as victims. Neither of these engagements are best experiences for children and young people. By having this kind of events, the police are aiming to give children and young people an opportunity to see the police in a different light and to think about policing as a future career choice.  

British Transport Policy would particularly welcome interest from Black, Brown and minority ethnic young people, girls and young people from socially deprived and challenging backgrounds attending these engagements. They are also keen to welcome SEN and Neurodivergent children and young people and offer for them to reach out and talk about what adjustments are needed to meet their needs. 

The next engagements are planned for the 10th and 11th of June 2026, at the Tulliallan Police College in Alloa.  The session will last approximately 2.5 hours and there will be two sessions per day.  

The morning session is at 9:00am arrival to start at 9:30 and the second session arrival at 12:00 midday for a 12:30pm start, on each day to finish by 3pm, as not to overrun the school finishing time. 

It is a Hydra exercise for age 15 upwards, whereby participants are shown a video storyline, requiring them to decide how to investigate it. The video gets stopped at various junctures for the children and young people to decide what decisions they need to make at each point. They will also get an input from the Child Exploitation Subject Matter Expert, the County Line and Major Crime detectives. 

You can book up to 15 seats per session, or individual young people can book with their parent or carers’ approval. Parents and carers can accompany their child to the engagement, but the syndicate rooms will only have young people present. Parents, carers and teachers can watch from the control room.  

Please note, in order to maintain a fair allocation, booking will be done on a first come first served basis. If you have any questions or want to book a space, please reach out to: tamara.herath@btp.pnn.police.uk   

Have a look at the Hydra Project Leaflet