The work is rewarding, says a special constable, but there is little public understanding of my role
“I’ve been a special constable for over 18 months. The job is voluntary and involves supporting regular police officers. We have to provide at least 16 hours of work a month, plus an additional three hours of training.
There are more than 10 specials in my station, which covers a town centre and surrounding rural villages. My work is mainly in the rural section but I regularly assist my colleagues in town on the weekend evenings, due to the increased frequency of incidents involving intoxicated people.
I enjoy the role. No two shifts are ever the same, and I get a huge sense of wellbeing serving my community.
My friends and family were surprised when I told them I wanted to become a special; they didn’t really understand what the job involves. In fact, there seems to be a general lack of awareness about specials. It would be nice to get some extra publicity from the police and Ministry of Justice. A lot of people don’t realise that specials are frontline officers, and think we are just deployed at church fetes and school visits.
Although we don’t work in some specialist roles, such as the armed response units or air operations, specials generally do the same work as regular police officers. And with extra training, specials even get involved with traffic, licensing, tactical, and police support units. My initial training was not as comprehensive as I had expected, but my force is happy to support us if we wish to go further with our training.
There have been some minor impacts from recent funding cuts. It would be nice to have some extra kit: specials are limited to one pair of trousers and two shirts, which you may need to change during your shift. Buying extra notebook holders, torches and other accessories seems to be common among both specials and regulars. I’ve bought extra cycling clothing for use on police bicycles, and thermals for winter shifts.
One major change has been that custody facilities have been centralised and are now shared by all the local stations. The facilities are better but further away, so it takes longer to move an offender to the cells. The time to arrest, transport and process suspects reduces the number of arrests because some officers cannot be bothered with the travel time, which can be well over an hour; and they’re even less keen when they’re nearing the end of their shift.
In addition, cross-border resource sharing can be frustrating as it means that specialist units are spread even thinner between forces. I am worried that the new National Police Helicopter Service and cross-border specialist unit sharing will mean resources may not be available or will take longer to reach us.
Over the past few months, specials have been called on at short notice more frequently to cover shifts when regular staffing levels are low. I take these shifts when I can, but in the long term this could become a problem if there isn’t adequate staffing and management of the regular positions. I wouldn’t wish for any police force to end up becoming dependent on specials, who are meant to be an extra resource.
One policy that hasn’t really worked is ‘restorative justice’. This is when, if the victim agrees, an offender is made to repay, repair or apologise for any damage they have caused – repainting a wall they have graffitied, for example. It’s a good idea, but sadly I have never seen this option used. Officers believe it will take too long to administer; to ensure the payments, work or apologies have been carried out satisfactorily; and to follow up if they have not.
However, the organisation of specials has improved dramatically with the introduction of a system for organising duties called ‘Duty-Sheet’. It allows us to sign up for shifts, see what training is available, and complete our timesheets and expenses. I’ve been able to take on more shifts and attend more training courses because I can easily see what’s available.
My force recognises our contribution to the police. We have a specials annual assembly, where we meet the heads of the force and are thanked by them. Occasionally, we are mistreated by regular police constables who see us as ‘overtime takers’ or ‘hobby bobbies’, but most appreciate our help and some are happy to mentor new specials.
Still, many regular police officers appear to have a lower level of morale than I expected, and seem to have lost the enjoyment of doing police work, seeing it as ‘just a job’. This can be disheartening when I double-crew with a regular and I am keen to work but the regular is tired and fed up.
Policy is always evolving due to updated force objectives and legal changes. It can be frustrating to keep up, but changes are covered during monthly training sessions. So far, most changes have been for the better and have led to more training opportunities. Although training leaves less time for frontline work, it has given me more skills and made me a better officer.”