Police accreditation is a voluntary process by which police agencies utilize all best practices in the profession and to exceed the highest standards of accountability and excellence.
Agencies participating in the process must undergo an on-site assessment and review conducted by the Massachusetts Police Accreditation Commission.
The first milestone in the process is achieving Certification.
After this has been achieved and within the next 12 months, agencies are then required to complete 257 mandatory standards as well as a percentage of 125 optional standards in order to achieve full Accreditation.
The Bridgewater Police Department was first awarded Certification in 2015 and full Accreditation in 2016. The department was re-accredited in 2019, and again in October 2022.
All Accredited agencies must undergo a two-day on-site reassessment every three years to maintain their Accreditation status.
There are currently over 200 police agencies participating in the program with just over 100 achieving Accreditation.
For more information about the accreditation process, visit the Massachusetts Police Accreditation Commission website: www.masspoliceaccred.net