Reality 07\09\2018
As most who follow me here and on twitter know I work on the principles “do good and good comes back” and “respect counts” Want to share this with you all……
A few weeks back on a Friday evening and into the early hours of Saturday morning I worked alongside one of my colleagues based at Dorset Police station. We were on response so it meant whatever came our way we did our best to attend. There were a number of incidents to deal with during our shift, concerns for welfare, motoring offences, domestic dispute and very sadly one fatality. Again I saw first-hand the high standard of professionalism displayed by officers based at the Police Station in Dorset. I was privileged as a Police Volunteer to share and be part of that work and to witness what is actually involved in dealing with offenders and effectively making decisions and bring conclusion to each case. Members of the public have very little perception of what is involved in any incident and how much effort behind the scenes goes into bringing that case to a satisfactory conclusion within the law. Police work is about individual judgments made at the time based on the information and circumstances to hand. In many cases entering into difficult and sometimes potential life threatening scenarios. Yes Police officers are trained well, but not for every eventuality that is a fact. The role now includes medical assistance, mental health issues, social care it is now a huge task facing any front line officer and is now not just upholding the law.
Until like me you are part of that policing you will not fully understand what is undertaken each and every day by not only my colleagues at Dorset but all forces in the UK today. I want to bring to your attention the list below if you read it and understand it your views will be somewhat enlightened.
The Nine Principles of Policing
- To prevent crime and disorder, as an alternative to their repression by military force and severity of legal punishment.
- To recognise always that the power of the police to fulfil their functions and duties is dependent on public approval of their existence, actions and behaviour and on their ability to secure and maintain public respect.
- To recognise always that to secure and maintain the respect and approval of the public means also the securing of the willing co-operation of the public in the task of securing observance of laws.
- To recognise always that the extent to which the co-operation of the public can be secured diminishes proportionately the necessity of the use of physical force and compulsion for achieving police objectives.
- 5. To seek and preserve public favour, not by pandering to public opinion; but by constantly demonstrating absolutely impartial service to law, in complete independence of policy, and without regard to the justice or injustice of the substance of individual laws, by ready offering of individual service and friendship to all members of the public without regard to their wealth or social standing, by ready exercise of courtesy and friendly good humour; and by ready offering of individual sacrifice in protecting and preserving life.
- To use physical force only when the exercise of persuasion, advice and warning is found to be insufficient to obtain public co-operation to an extent necessary to secure observance of law or to restore order, and to use only the minimum degree of physical force which is necessary on any particular occasion for achieving a police objective.
- To maintain at all times a relationship with the public that gives reality to the historic tradition that the police are the public and that the public are the police, the police being only members of the public who are paid to give full time attention to duties which are incumbent on every citizen in the interests of community welfare and existence.
- To recognise always the need for strict adherence to police-executive functions, and to refrain from even seeming to usurp the powers of the judiciary of avenging individuals or the State, and of authoritatively judging guilt and punishing the guilty.
- To recognise always that the test of police efficiency is the absence of crime and disorder, and not the visible evidence.
Every Police Officer works relentlessly to keep us all safe closing message is simple..
” Support them, Show respect to them”
JG