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PCSOs – PUTTING THE

For years the subject of disparagingterms used to refer to thecomplementary policing role theyperform (the nicknames ‘Blunkett’sbobbies’ or ‘plastic policemen’ are nowwearing thin), more disappointing forPCSOs must have been the recentassertion by the TaxPayers’ Alliance that“they are nothing but a PR stunt”.

The alliance was responding to a storyin a local paper which revealed thatHampshire Constabulary’s 330 PCSOscost £156,000 for each crime detectedlast year. “Questions have been askedabout their cost effectiveness,” thearticle continued, “after they detectedjust 50 crimes and handed out 122 fixedpenalty notices.”

As damaging as the article was to thereputations and livelihoods of the officersconcerned, they can take comfortknowing that the piece was wide of themark as far as facts are concerned.

“I was infuriated when I read thearticle,” said Cosham-based PCSO LisaElliott. “It was based on statistics, and it’s nonsense to say we don’t help solve

by Aaron Brown

crimes. I know of plenty of cases where a job’s been closed only to be reopenedbecause a PCSO has passed onintelligence; the case is then given to an officer who makes the detection.”

The real dealSo what’s the real story behind PCSOsand the role they perform? Introduced by Labour in 2002, they are members of police staff who work alongside regularpolice officers, providing a visible andaccessible uniformed presence to improvethe quality of life in the community andoffer greater public reassurance.

PCSOs are not replacement policeofficers but are there to address some of the tasks that do not require theexperience or powers held by policeofficers, which often take officers awayfrom more appropriate duties.

Hampshire Constabulary firstintroduced PCSOs in March 2005.

The numbers then grew rapidly beforesettling at our current total of 348.

The recruitment and training ofPCSOs at such a fast pace proved to bevery challenging for the force, but weadapted quickly. From being one of thelast forces in the country to recruitPCSOs, Hampshire Constabulary is nowconsidered one of the leading forces forPCSO training and deployment.

PCSO Lisa Elliott,Cosham

I joined the force in2006. It’s unusual to be in a job where you

meet people and they say it’s nice tosee you.

Shortly after I helped set up a youthcafé in Drayton, and we do a lot ofwork with Springfield School. Weorganise criminal damage sessionswith the Year 8 pupils, teaching themthe reasons why they should steerclear of anti-social behaviour. We do a similar thing with the Year 11 kids,

In their own words... explaining the dangers of underagedrinking and other forms of ASB and howthey can affect the quality of life of thoseinvolved. Our lunchtime patrols are veryeffective because we get to know theyoungsters, find out who’s up to no goodand keep tabs on things.

We had one 12-year-old lad who’dbeen throwing stones at properties atthe local park. We walked him home to see his mum, he got a ticking off forbreaking a window, the damage waspaid for, he didn’t need to be arrestedand we never saw him again. Policeofficers don’t have time to do that sortof thing; they’re there to carry out

detection and arrest.I also regularly visit elderly victims

of crime. Twenty minutes chatting tothem can make a big difference totheir lives. It gives us a chance toprovide them with crime preventionadvice, and we can also make socialservices aware of anything they needto know about.

I can’t remember a single crime being detected in my name, it doesn’t happen that way. But thenumerous enquiries I’ve made and theevidence and information I’veproduced leading to crimes beingsolved is immeasurable.

It’s nonsense to say we don’t help solve crimes.

It’s been a difficult past few weeks for the nation’s police community support officers (PCSOs). Maligned andmisunderstood by much of the media, the 16,500 men and women who give communities a greater sense ofsecurity by their visibility on the country’s streets may wellbe forgiven for wanting to disappear into the shadowsfollowing their vilification by the press.

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Frontline

E RECORD STRAIGHT

Vital to the force Extended Police Family inspector JulieRawson explained how the role of PCSOshas developed and why they havebecome a vital part of the organisation.

She said: “The public constantlydemand a higher uniform presence intheir community and PSCOs have enabledthe force to achieve this. PCSOs havebeen an integral part of the success ofSafer Neighbourhoods, ensuring that theforce is able to strive to meet its target ofbeing visible within the community atleast 80 per cent of duty time.

“PCSOs are able to focus on thelower level of crime and anti-socialbehaviour that many members of thepublic consistently list as their priority.

“What much of the recent negativepublicity has failed to portray is that it isthese very incidents, if not dealt withpromptly, that lead on to become theserious incidents that could have been

PCSO Lisa Palmer,TottonI have been a PCSO for almost 18 months.A typical day for meincludes providing

community reassurance by carryingout high-visibility patrols around thetown centre and my own beat,which is West Totton. I deal with anyanti-social behaviour. I also conductregular visits to my local schools and community centres, whichgives members of my community

the chance to come and talk to meabout any issues they may have. I also do this by conducting StreetMeets on my beat – these are agreat way to meet the people in mycommunity and provide reassuranceand crime prevention advice.

The recent negative press PCSOsreceived was very frustrating, andeven more so as whoever wrote thearticle clearly doesn’t understand therole of a PCSO and didn’t do theirhomework.

So due to their lack of education,we have now been slated. However,thankfully the people who we dealwith can make up their own mindsand would be gutted to see me orany of the PCSOs I work with inTotton have to leave.

We are relied on heavily when itcomes to reassurance visits, and thepublic are always pleased to see avisible presence from us.

In their own words...

avoided had appropriate action beentaken earlier.

“In many cases, it would not bepossible for police officers to dedicatesufficient time to these incidents, howeverPCSOs are able to provide this service andin doing so prevent situations fromdeveloping further. At the same time theyare able to gather intelligence and buildon the confidence of the police service.”

Engagement, not enforcementThe role of PCSOs focuses on communityengagement, and many of them haveshown great initiative with some of theprojects that they have either led orbecome involved in.

These have ranged from engagingwith schools and youth projects toobtaining funding to clean up an area toensure that it is free from graffiti andlitter. In many cases, local residents haveassisted and this has led to ongoingpartnership working with both thecommunity and other organisations.

Insp Rawson added: “Contrary torecent media articles, a PCSO’s role is notdesigned to be an enforcement role, eventhough they have powers to enable themto deal with offences when appropriate.

“The PCSOs in Hampshire and the Isleof Wight provide an invaluable serviceand now, more than five years since theirintroduction, it is difficult to imagine howthe force ever managed without them.”

Tough times ahead for policingSomeone else who is happy to set therecord straight about the articlequestioning PCSOs’ cost effectiveness ischairman of Hampshire Police FederationJohn Apter. “I was asked by the reporterto comment on the number of crimesdetected by PCSOs and the number offixed penalty notices they issued lastyear,” he explained. “I said that to usethis link was unfair as this is not their role.

“I also said that if you were tocompare the cost [of PCSOs] with thosefigures, it could be seen by some asshocking. Clearly the headline-grabbingword of ‘shocking’ was used to grab thereaders’ interest.”

It’s worth reiterating that PCSOs arepolice staff, not police officers. Whileofficers’ jobs are protected, post-Comprehensive Spending Review thefuture of PCSOs remains to be seen.

Perhaps the last word should go toKathy Symonds, branch secretary ofUNISON in Hampshire and the Isle ofWight. She said: “Rather than being a waste of public funds, our PCSOsprovide a valuable policing serviceenhancing the work of the constabulary. If they were lost as a result of the coalitiongovernment spending cuts theircontribution to safer communities andcrime fighting would quickly be evident.”

PCSOs give communities a greater sense of security by their visibility on the streets

The role of PCSOs focuses oncommunity engagement, andmany of them have shown greatinitiative with the projectsthey’ve been involved in.