Joining the Police
Discussion
22Rgt said:
Greendubber said:
Honestly?....... don't bother.
In the last maybe 5 years I've seen the job I loved get destroyed, career bobbies are leaving, specialist roles and training are non existent and you'll get nothing but grief.
The only way I'd join is to do a few years and then knob off to Western Australia.
^In the last maybe 5 years I've seen the job I loved get destroyed, career bobbies are leaving, specialist roles and training are non existent and you'll get nothing but grief.
The only way I'd join is to do a few years and then knob off to Western Australia.
This all the way.
Knobs job for knobs nowadays. Knob off to Australia for far better career prospects . Cooking shrimps over coal is paying well at the moment, far more interesting and will command much more respect...
Somewhat off topic and industry cons aside does anyone have any tips or know of requirements to join the special?
My younger brother applied last year shortly after finishing collage but was unfortunately turned down, I believe this means he can't re-apply for a while but I was wondering if there's anything that would better his chances next time around?
My younger brother applied last year shortly after finishing collage but was unfortunately turned down, I believe this means he can't re-apply for a while but I was wondering if there's anything that would better his chances next time around?
Samjeev said:
Somewhat off topic and industry cons aside does anyone have any tips or know of requirements to join the special?
My younger brother applied last year shortly after finishing collage but was unfortunately turned down, I believe this means he can't re-apply for a while but I was wondering if there's anything that would better his chances next time around?
When I joined as a special, it was the same process as the regulars, but that was back in 2001, so it may have changed. If you Google Police Community Forum, it's a good place to gather information on all aspects of policing.My younger brother applied last year shortly after finishing collage but was unfortunately turned down, I believe this means he can't re-apply for a while but I was wondering if there's anything that would better his chances next time around?
I've enjoyed my 12 years as a regular, but I wouldn't join now. There's too much politics involved and the cuts are destroying the service.
We will soon, if we haven't already, become fire brigade police, no proactive stuff and just responding to calls
My team has just fallen victim of the latest cuts and we are all looking for jobs, it's sapping the morale beyond belief!
I'd still recommend it. But I'd make sure that those I was recommending it to were under no illusion of what to expect. There's a significant number of downsides to joining the police, but there are also some good. I still don't regret joining and have no immediate plans to jump ship.
jbsportstech said:
my local force ask for a special qualification now before you can apply for regulars! certificate in policing if i remember.
That would be the Certificate in the Knowledge of Policing, or CKP for short. It used to be the PLC where we are, but they've changed that to the CKP now... and at the same time, removed any of the subsidising for it. I joined up under the impression that, if I so wished, I could pay £200 to do the PLC and then get into the regulars after the first couple of years. Now, it's an £800 bill to get the CKP done, after which if I switch to the regulars (if recruitment opens before your certificate reaches its best before date), I'll take around a £4,000 pay cut for more responsibility, more hours... hmmmm. It does go up more than my current role, but with things the way they are currently as well as some fairly nasty personal experiences (not the job I've done, more to do with the people within it), I will be thinking long and hard before I consider joining the regulars.carpetsoiler said:
jbsportstech said:
my local force ask for a special qualification now before you can apply for regulars! certificate in policing if i remember.
That would be the Certificate in the Knowledge of Policing, or CKP for short. It used to be the PLC where we are, but they've changed that to the CKP now... and at the same time, removed any of the subsidising for it. I joined up under the impression that, if I so wished, I could pay £200 to do the PLC and then get into the regulars after the first couple of years. Now, it's an £800 bill to get the CKP done, after which if I switch to the regulars (if recruitment opens before your certificate reaches its best before date), I'll take around a £4,000 pay cut for more responsibility, more hours... hmmmm. It does go up more than my current role, but with things the way they are currently as well as some fairly nasty personal experiences (not the job I've done, more to do with the people within it), I will be thinking long and hard before I consider joining the regulars.Nice attitude. Would you rather there were no specials?
My twin brother, a Police dog handler of maybe 10 years, absolutely loves his job. But then he did a similar job in the military before that, whether that has any bearing on things I don't know, but he's perfectly happy. Next time I see him I'll mention this subject and see what he says.
My twin brother, a Police dog handler of maybe 10 years, absolutely loves his job. But then he did a similar job in the military before that, whether that has any bearing on things I don't know, but he's perfectly happy. Next time I see him I'll mention this subject and see what he says.
carpetsoiler said:
That would be the Certificate in the Knowledge of Policing, or CKP for short. It used to be the PLC where we are, but they've changed that to the CKP now... and at the same time, removed any of the subsidising for it. I joined up under the impression that, if I so wished, I could pay £200 to do the PLC and then get into the regulars after the first couple of years. Now, it's an £800 bill to get the CKP done, after which if I switch to the regulars (if recruitment opens before your certificate reaches its best before date), I'll take around a £4,000 pay cut for more responsibility, more hours... hmmmm. It does go up more than my current role, but with things the way they are currently as well as some fairly nasty personal experiences (not the job I've done, more to do with the people within it), I will be thinking long and hard before I consider joining the regulars.
I took a pay cut when I joined the police, about a third of take-home disappeared. I also went from working a 36-hour, four day week to three days off a month. We sold the TV, the car and gave up on holidays. My parents supplied us with food parcels the week before the end of the month.I'm glad I did give up my previous job though.
Police pay goes up and down all the time. When I joined it was appalling and there were vacancies in all forces that could not be filled. Then the pay went up and there were queues. The problem is that the paymasters, the government, can play fast a loose with the job and no one can stop them. It is not as if they care.
The main difference now from any time in my 30 years is the spin the government, especially this one but the previous one as well, put on information. We all know that 70% of police officers are overweight because this was said in the media. Yet the figure came from a group of officers who put themselves forward for a trial because they were overweight. Sensible spin might have been that 30% of officers who think they are fat are in fact within the parameters for healthy.
But we can't have the papers saying nice things about the police, can we. Sends all the wrong messages.
PH is rather right wing. Sorry to spring this on anyone not aware of it, but it is. I've always thought of myself as a bit right of centre and this, evidently, makes me a socialist. 15 years ago the support for the police would have been total on here apart from traffic regulation. Now it is reversed and speed cameras are the big anti bit despite the police doing less of it now than for years.
The government and the media that thinks it owes allegiance to it are to blame. The police were criticised in my time, not enough in the 70s I believe, but there was sometimes support, positives. Those were the days.
That, I think, might be the biggest problem for the service. One of the joys of being a police officer for me was the general support of the public. Now we have people on here taking in the propaganda of the MPs and repeating it as fact. All police are, it seems, fat, even the ones who thought they were fat but weren't. To prove it, there's a picture of one of the 70% of the small section who were fat. All police are liars, especially the one whom the court found was truthful in the Mitchell case. And Mitchell was fitted up by police. He never swore, never even raised his voice. And probably didn't even have his bicycle with him. Yet the officer said the incident hadn't bothered him, only the lies being told about him by Mitchell. Yet the officer is criticised.
There has been a fundamental change in policing in this country. The steps, strides at time, to modernise the staffing and attitudes of officers is in danger of being lost. Some say it already has been.
I don't want to give advice as to whether to join the police or not, but consider where you'll be in 10 years. The service will have changed out of all recognition, and almost certainly not for the worst, unless Cameron gets his wish and it is privatised, and you'll still be in you current role.
What will you wish you'd done?
OpulentBob said:
Nice attitude. Would you rather there were no specials?
My twin brother, a Police dog handler of maybe 10 years, absolutely loves his job. But then he did a similar job in the military before that, whether that has any bearing on things I don't know, but he's perfectly happy. Next time I see him I'll mention this subject and see what he says.
Not at all - many do a stirling job but go home to their day job at the end of the day and don't carry the responsibility of workloads, investigations etc and ultimately aren't responsible for their decision making as there should always be a regular overseeing what they do, unlike regulars who are always 100% responsible for their own actions - right or wrong and which can potentially lead to discipline proceedings or job lossMy twin brother, a Police dog handler of maybe 10 years, absolutely loves his job. But then he did a similar job in the military before that, whether that has any bearing on things I don't know, but he's perfectly happy. Next time I see him I'll mention this subject and see what he says.
The issue with policing has been the 'death by a thousand cuts' expansions of what the police do. Or at least this combined with increasing demand in the broad category of 'non-crime'.
The headline figures that 'crime is down' are all well and good. The problem is crime doesn't make up anywhere near as much of policing time as people think.
The left-hand side of this graphic is what takes up a major amount of police time and is continuing to increase: http://college.pressofficeadmin.com/repository/fil...
The impact of cuts to other services doesn't help as a lot of 'social issues' fall to the police. Lots of time spent with very little 'product' at the end.
The headline figures that 'crime is down' are all well and good. The problem is crime doesn't make up anywhere near as much of policing time as people think.
The left-hand side of this graphic is what takes up a major amount of police time and is continuing to increase: http://college.pressofficeadmin.com/repository/fil...
The impact of cuts to other services doesn't help as a lot of 'social issues' fall to the police. Lots of time spent with very little 'product' at the end.
Bigends said:
OpulentBob said:
Nice attitude. Would you rather there were no specials?
My twin brother, a Police dog handler of maybe 10 years, absolutely loves his job. But then he did a similar job in the military before that, whether that has any bearing on things I don't know, but he's perfectly happy. Next time I see him I'll mention this subject and see what he says.
Not at all - many do a stirling job but go home to their day job at the end of the day and don't carry the responsibility of workloads, investigations etc and ultimately aren't responsible for their decision making as there should always be a regular overseeing what they do, unlike regulars who are always 100% responsible for their own actions - right or wrong and which can potentially lead to discipline proceedings or job lossMy twin brother, a Police dog handler of maybe 10 years, absolutely loves his job. But then he did a similar job in the military before that, whether that has any bearing on things I don't know, but he's perfectly happy. Next time I see him I'll mention this subject and see what he says.
Apols for biting. To the OP. A serious point.
Check your post and look for the typing error. I'll give you a clue, it's on the first line.
Your application might be one of many and those with mistakes are the ones that end up in the bin.
Always check before submitting paperwork.
As for the job, I too was told on my first day that it's f*%"ed. That was in 1992.
I was injured out and got an early pension. Fortunately I had transferred my previous pensions into the Police system, thus buying me extra years. That's worth considering for anyone contemplating joining, assuming you can still do that.
Good luck with it.
Check your post and look for the typing error. I'll give you a clue, it's on the first line.
Your application might be one of many and those with mistakes are the ones that end up in the bin.
Always check before submitting paperwork.
As for the job, I too was told on my first day that it's f*%"ed. That was in 1992.
I was injured out and got an early pension. Fortunately I had transferred my previous pensions into the Police system, thus buying me extra years. That's worth considering for anyone contemplating joining, assuming you can still do that.
Good luck with it.
Wacky Racer said:
Well as I said earlier in the thread, my son's been in it three years now (Plus three years as a special) and loves the job.....(but not the 30 mile commute in winter.., but that's not the jobs fault)
We'll see how he feels in a few more years, but so far so good.
Give it another 4 and he'll be clawing at the door to get out.We'll see how he feels in a few more years, but so far so good.
Daily internet job searches will become the norm.
Gassing Station | Speed, Plod & the Law | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff