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Ammon News - AMMONNEWS - A team of seven ex-police officers are training local forces by drawing on experiences of community policing in places like Northern Ireland.

They have transformed the relationship between Syrian refugees and local police from confrontation to trust - slashing serious disorder from 90 events two years ago to just one last year.

Today, Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond will announce the group is getting £380,000 worth of kit like radios to help keep the peace.

The Siren team led by ex-Royal Ulster Constabulary sergeant Stephen Boddy, 55, has trained 36 Jordanian community police officers and 26 assistants - effectively the same as PCSOs on Britain's streets.

Speaking as The Sun visited the Zaatari refugee camp in Jordan - home to almost 80,000 people - Mr Boddy said: "When we first came here the Jordanian police were only patrolling the perimeter of the camp and if they ever did come in it was very confrontational.

"We have drawn on experience from all over the UK and elsewhere to set about building trust, getting the police used to being in the camp and the refugees used to seeing the police.

"Now they will report crimes but also tell them about access to services and other things and it's normal for them to be here.

"We have also trained ex-Jordanian police to be like PCSOs and kitted them out in hi-vis jackets so everyone knows who they are.

"At first we would patrol with them to mentor them but now we can stand back and it has made a huge difference.

"Two years ago there were 90 public order offences and last year there was just one. It feels like a very safe place to be."

Announcing the extra support after meeting the officers, Mr Hammond said: "It is a very initiative, we want to support it and encourage it to expand."

I'm running the 2016 London Marathon in support of ABF, The Soldiers' Charity.

*The Sun