New career with the Police

[eastshells]

Hi guys.

I have been thinking about a career change for a while now and really would like to work for the police. I'm just in awe and fascinated by them and think they do a very admirable job.
I don't want to be a Bobby on the beat as I'm not confident enough for that!
But.. I have thought about being a 999 handler as it has very good progression prospects.
I've looked into it and the application process is very in depth (as it should be, not complaining) such as not being allowed to apply if you have any debt..?
I find this slightly mad, as don't most people have some kind of debt? The people who would be applying for those roles certainly aren't going to be rolling in it so would most likely have some debts behind them. I thought they'd be glad to get applications given the lack of staff at the moment?
It's putting me off. Is it really that hard to get into? I'd love some advice from anyone in that field.

Hi there. I'm a police officer and have had to go through their enhanced vetting. What they mean is any unmanageable debt. The thinking is if you have unmanageable debt it makes you a target to be open to bribery.
I have know plenty of officers with a lot of debt but have demonstrated it's manageable. Just be upfront and honest.

You’ll undergo vetting inc financial, you’ll need to declare any ccj’s, bankruptcy etc as above it’s unmanaged debt.

Oh ok. That makes sense, I hadn't thought of that. Thank you so much.

Have you looked at Despatching as a possible option. I've been doing that for years & I love it. I'd say it's more challenging than call handling but it depends what you're looking for.

I wouldn't last 10 mins as a call handler. I dont have the temperament or patience for it

It's a standard question for a lot of jobs

Thank you. This is helpful to know. I certainly don't have any unmanageable debts. It just a couple of credit cards. Would I need to prove that I have a payment plan in place?

No, I haven't. I didn't actually know there was a difference! Clearly there is still a lot of research I need to do! I just went on the website and looked at current roles in my area (Lewisham)
But I will definitely take a look. Thank you!

Not in any jobs I've worked in before. I've always been in education.

Not for any jobs I've work in before, and I've worked in a lot of different industries. Currently work for the NHS and have not had any questions asked about my finances at any stage.

I would think after a month of dealing with drunks, upset tesidents who’ve been burgled, neighbour arguments, violence in the home -your confidence will rapidly build.

@eastshells

No, they won't ask about payment plans

The financial part of the vetting process, asks about savings, debts etc etc

This enables them to make a debt ratio figure

If you're currently paying your debts comfortably, don't worry

Huge difference. Call handlers answer calls, put them on the system and that's the end of their involvement

Despatchers are in the control room & deal with the calls. Deciding if they are a police matter, prioritising ones that need attending & dispatching cops to them. Anything the cops need done goes via control room. Were the voices on the other end of their radio. Can be anything from checking something on the call, calling an ambulance, arranging road closures etc

We deal with any pursuits the cops have whether on foot or in a vehicle. Its a lot of responsibility but its really interesting

I'd definitely recommend looking into that too

@Redglitter that sounds infinitely more interesting and more up my alley! Thank you for pointing this out.
Is that not harder to get into though given that it's more complex?

Finance, defense, police, lots of government roles handling potentially sensitive info that you might get bribed for.

I'm sure it would! I would like to eventually get into more challenging roles. Just don't think I'm ready to be chasing thugs down the street just yet! 😆

Thank you for the info. This is all so reassuring!

In my force you apply for the contact management centre and both routes are the same initial training. You can specialise as contact management (inbound 999 / 101) or control room (despatch) after that. And they are moving more towards multi skilled staff for flexibility as well.

Re the debt thing, I have the usual mortgage, car loan, couple of credit cards. But no missed payments, no CCJs, no indications that I'm overstretched and it was no issue. I also had to declare my social media accounts during the vetting process FYI.

Surely that would exclude anyone who has a mortgage then?

Some forces also have a criminal justice unit/department.
They are involved in putting the case file together and making sure it's all up to speed ready to be used by the CPS at court. This involves disclosure evidence, making sure all statements are all on file, replying to action plans from CPS, judge etc.
Its the next step on from chasing thugs, making sure the case gets to court and the victim gets the right outcome. Interesting stuff and knowledge would also come in handy if you do decide to go down the response officer route

I'm currently at the end of my training for contact management.
I think every constab is different in terms of training and progression. As well as the interview stage too.

We train as call takers and then after probation train as facilitators before dispatch. It's a natural progression route within this force.

Like others have said regarding debt, I have a loan, credit card and mortgage but all manageable.

Normal debt is fine - IE mortgage, car finance etc.
If your outgoings are huge, unmanageable or weird, or you are receiving large cash 'gifts' on the regular, as a pp said, this could indicate an potential for bribery

Great advice, thank you all!
For those of you who have progressed onto other roles, would you say it was difficult to progress to other positions?

I don't think so. Its a very different job so different skillsets and appeals to different people

I know in the Force I'm in Despatching is better paid too

As a civilian, I started as a warrants clerk, then case builder, criminal justice decision maker and then before I left I worked on a project to replace the case & custody system. Was there 22 year in total. I had colleagues go on to be officers, call handlers/dispatch, detention officers etc so a fair bit of variety is there

@Redglitter which force are you in? I know you can't give specifics but I'm genuinely interested