Mark Hadley
Special Constable in North Kent
Communications Officer, Kent Police Force Control Room
Communications Officer, Kent Police Force Control Room
I’m based at north Kent and a
typical day as a Special for me starts when I attend the station and am briefed
on what is going on in the area that day. I’ll then take a vehicle and proactively
patrol in key areas where there may have been problems overnight or where I
know issues such as anti-social behaviour can occur. I’ll keep an ear out for
any incoming calls and attend where needed.
One of things you have to
do to get your ‘independent operational status’ as a Special is carry out an
arrest, which I was nervous about and determined to get right. After some
advice from my tutor I successfully carried out the arrest.
My most memorable 'job' began while I was dealing with a theft of a purse
in Gillingham. While giving an elderly lady
advice about cancelling her cards, a call came in about a burglary in process.
I was only around the
corner so my colleague and I made our way to the address. At the scene, a
neighbour told us the burglars had entered the property through the back door
so we called more officers to attend to cover all exits. While other officers
found one man at the rear of the property, my colleague let me in the front
and, with our batons in hand, we searched the rest of the property for the
reported second man. Our initial search showed no result so I positioned myself
at the front door to make sure no one came in or out with authorisation. While
other colleagues dealt with the arrest at the back of the property, I saw a
window of what must have been a cellar open and a man began to climb out. The
training kicked in and I ordered the man to come through the window slowly and
turn away so I could cuff him and arrest him for burglary. More experienced
officers said what a good result it was, and how rare it is to catch a burglar
still in the house. The man was later charged and sentenced, so a good result!
The best thing about being a Special is meeting a variety of people from all walks of
life. As a Special you go to so many types of jobs and you see so many things.
These are all learning curves and you always have to be on your toes. You
obviously get the information from the initial call but when you arrive it
could actually be something completely different. Sometimes you have to
reassess the situation and think of ‘Plan B’. The adrenaline rush you feel when
you are on the way to your calls never goes! I have attended many incidents in
the time I have served and the adrenaline is still the same as the first job I
attended.
To be a Special,
communication skills are a must! If you cannot talk to people easily, it really
isn’t the job for you. You need to also be able to stay open minded as you hear
many sides of stories and need to base your judgement on all of them. You must be able to empathise when people
come to you with their concerns and you need to respect people’s views whether
you agree or not - just listening to that person may make all the difference.
