The Metropolitan Police - a Career as Special Constable

It has been exactly 4 years and 1 day after my attestation that I resigned from the Met Police. That was about 6 weeks ago and having got a bit of time to digest what I did, I think it is time to write about my time in the Met. 

People always ask "Why did you do it at first place and join?" And I must admit, I got into it like the Virgin Mary who suddenly found herself pregnant and had no clue how and by whom.  

So, one day I read a book about freelancing and it said, one has to do some voluntary work to make it easy to talk about something when in touch with new clients, etc. The day after I read that I saw an advertisement in the Tube that the Met is looking for Special Constables - those are voluntary police officers with the same rights and duties as regular policemen, but their commitment is only 200 hours a year on a voluntary basis. This is a very British institution and not really known around the world. 

Anyway, I applied, went through the 2 days of assessment centre and got offered a place at police school. I attended. That was August 2009. And if I remember well, I wrote a few blog entries about my time there. 

My first 2 and a bit years I spent in a Safer Neighbourhood Team in Westminster and my job was mainly to patrol the streets of that area, in uniform. Sometimes though we were in plain clothes, when we did special operations. 

Those were fascinating 2 years. Every duty was different. Sometimes we did drug searches, I was involved in a raid of a pub (also drug related), we investigated crime scenes, regulated traffic, controlled crowds at special events, took calls from the radio, went out and got witness statements, and the list goes on and on. 

I took part in a few major events then - There was the Opening of Parliament and I was based right outside Buckingham Palace from where I could see the Royal carriage leave and return, and then, a major highlight, the Royal Wedding, at which I was also in front of Buckingham Palace. That was pretty amazing. The shift lasted for about 15 hours or so and I could barely stand on my feet anymore on that day. I saw the kiss on the balcony!

Another major event in those years were the London Riots. That was not so much exciting but thrilling. The riots started at a weekend and lasted for a few days. I was stuck at home and did not know about riots as I had a quiet weekend without doing anything, not even watching TV. Monday, I signed up for duty (unknowingly still) and found out on my way to the police station what happened. I signed up for 3 days and worked for about 50 hours from Monday to Wednesday. 

It was fascinating to see what kind of team spirit there actually is amongst officers in the Met. It made me feel proud being part of that team, and I dedicated all my available time that week to be part of that and fight for peace in London. It sounds all a bit overly patriotic, but it was really what it felt like in those days. 

A little bit after the riots I obtained IPS, my independent patrol status. This means, I could walk the streets of London on my own and did not have to pair up anymore with someone else. This was actually rather scary, as I could no longer rely on a partner. But I like pushing my boundaries, and patrolling alone was always exciting. One never knows what's happening in the next second. Time just passed by like crazy on days when I was on duty.

At some stage I saw that the Met was looking for special constables to attend a detective course so we could help out in SCD and CID, too. This was a pilot project and I applied, and got accepted. Together with about 15 or so, I went back to police school for a few weeks and got trained up. Suddenly, I was transferred to CID, the Major Crime Unit, permanently after I finished my training. And that's where I spent my nearly next 2 years. 

CID started for me a few months before the Olympics for which I added extra shifts so that this big event could take place smoothly across London. It was again good to be part of something and I did my share. 

Once in CID life is completely different. We got cases on the table and had to investigate. Investigation can mean - CCTV collection and viewing, taking statements, sitting in interviews, doing forensic research, and much more. 

All in all, I think it was one of the best choices I have ever made to join the Metropolitan Police. And I already planned ahead till my retirement, as I wanted to spend all my life there. It was the ideal hobby for me. As freelance consultant I always made sure, my contracts gave me flexibility to perform my duty and manage to get to my 200 hours per year and beyond. 

I was still in my bubble of happiness and feeling good that I did not anticipate radical changes within the police force. This of course led to my resignation a few weeks ago, as I find it impossible to spend time there. 

This branch of voluntary police officers, the Special Constabulary, turned into a recruitment tool for the Met. When someone wants to join the Force as a regular he or she has to become a Special first and that for about 2 years before an application was accepted. This basically means, there are tons of young volunteers who only do so because they want a job afterwards. It sounds like modern slavery. "Real volunteers" like me, who only see this as an opportunity to spend some time doing something useful, became a minority. 

There were those changes in the Met recently, a new policing model came out and all Specials were called back into uniformed service mainly at weekend nights patrolling the Westend and other busy areas and answering calls. Basically, back to the basics. And unfortunately, that does not work for me. I can't do nights at all and I need weekends for myself to relax as my daytime job as management consultant is quite demanding. And to be truthfully honest, I don't want to do nightshifts either. 

There is only one way out, and that was my resignation. It is really a shame but that's life. I tried to negotiate, but got told - either I accept the new conditions or I have to leave. And I left. It is fine now. Initially, I went through some proper bereavement, as I missed my lost status as copper a lot. Not being part of the Met was quite hard to accept for me; I really saw this as my second career. But at least now I have more time for myself and am not longer that much restricted in my life. And let's face it, there is an end to everything. 

Freelance vs Employment

It is "in between project time" again and I am looking for something new. To get me started, I think I should use my blog again, as type of self-coaching tool, where I would sit and write about my steps in the process to look for a new job or project. 

One of the problems I have faced so far is: What on earth do I actually want? Headhunters call and tell me about some job they have and then ask whether I like it. I would say "yes" or "no" but in the end, I feel I am missing a list of things I should look out for more categorically rather than imagining I could do something or not. 

The first step today is to think about freelancing vs employment. What do I want? 


THOUGHTS ON FREELANCING:

I have been freelancing for the last few years and for me it works pretty well. I would be hired for a project and these assignments can last from a few weeks to a few years. I like freelancing, as it gives me lots of flexibility which I appreciate so highly. It also allows me to do my voluntary job whenever I want to do it and not necessarily on a weekend (I am not allowed to write about my voluntary job but I mentioned it on my blog somewhere. Let's say it involves the terms "law and order"). 

Recently, I started to wonder whether I should go back to employment, as there are also negative sides to freelancing: It is not so much those few weeks or months in between projects, it is also that one reaches a glass ceiling and the jobs out there for freelancers can all be a bit "basic" at times. Lucky me, mine were good so far, but I know what's out there. I am ready for more in my life and feel I need to push my career a bit more. Nonetheless, I would still go ahead with freelancing and projects as I find it satisfying and rewarding to help my clients to be successful. 

Typically, these are the areas where I would see myself working in:

- Management Consultant/Project Manager/Programme Manager/Project Director/PMO for a consultancy company that specialises in operational excellence, efficiency and performance improvements, coaching, change management, manufacturing and supply chain.
- The same as above, but contracting directly to the end-client rather than through a consultancy company.

Freelance heaven would be, if I had a list of all sorts of clients who I could call or who would call regularly for shorter assignments and keep me busy. 


THOUGHTS ON EMPLOYMENT:

Employment is a different beast. Even though flexibility seems gone, this does not mean that I would enter a life of boredom and being restricted to the daily treadmill. Employment is still an essential way to climb up the career ladder and put more long-term meaning into one's work life, rather than hunting from project to project. 

What would I like to consider where I could use my skills the best? That would be of course any position where one is needed who can detect causes of all sorts of problems arising in companies and deal with them effectively. I can imagine this to be a board or "reporting to board" position, possibly in Operations. 

It would be an industry job, somewhere manufacturing or supply chain. Or in the internal consulting branch of a major international player that is looking to strengthen their continuous improvement efforts. 

I am a bit hesitant to work for another consultancy company. Somehow I have done that during the first few years in my life and it feels I have done it enough. I would not like to rule it out though, as I could possibly like a Regional Operations Director role or anything similar to that. 

Last week I met a headhunter who is looking for 2 positions: The one is for a company that looks to get outsource contracts from the national security industry and the other one is one of the major international property services companies. For the first I am interesting because of my voluntary job AND my knowledge of performance improvement, for the latter only my consulting knowledge would be of advantage as I would come in to ask all the right and difficult questions which would then enable them to think "improvement and change". 

What I like about these 2, those are completely new areas for me. I never worked in either, the security nor building industry. What a challenge to tackle!


EXPERIENCE AS FREELANCER:

If my conclusion is that in the end I should possibly consider another full-time position, would that mean I have to automatically say freelancing was not worth doing? Absolutely not! One learns so many essential skills as freelancer; the best thing for me is that I know I can rely on myself and can do it all alone. I learned to ask for business and find opportunities, as in the old days I always expected work would be there for me one way or another. I am responsible for whatever I am doing and there is no organisation in which I could hide and wait till the storm is over. These are all extremely good skills and I am very proud of having them.  

In the end, freelance work or employment, it does not really matter. Once I commit to an assignment or job I do it full-heartedly. So yes, let's get this job hunt going and see what I will come up with.

The Bill - Week 4

The training is finally over. I must say it was one of the most intense experiences I have had in a while. Apart from lvarious egal bits we learned how to fight fires and yes, I passed my last exam with 92% which made me smile.

I am very glad I did the course and joined the MET, and I am very happy I managed to pass all exams, practical and academic ones, successfully. Once one is in his late 30ies, learning must be learned again.

The teams of trainers and trainees were great. We had an extremely good time, and with many of them I became good friends. Facebook helps to stay in touch because most of us will be allocated throughout all London boroughs.

Anyway, my real life has me back now. This coming week I am flying out to Hungary where I am going to analyse a company at which I installed a management operating system a few years ago. More of that in a new blog entry at the end of this coming week.

The Bill - Week 3

Week 3 is over and I am absolutely exhausted. Not that the material we learn is overly difficult, but maybe, since it is all new, one feels a bit overwhelmed. Anyway, we got to feel CS gas this week, which was "interesting". I got a full load blown right into my eyes by the wind when they sprayed it. And then I was blinded for a while. One thing is for sure, it is a good and effective tool.

And then we had 2 days of life saving training. That was extraordinarily good and important to have. Thinking about my last first aid training, which was back in 1984, I have forgotten literally everything!!!

The team has grown together even more now. It is fun to attend classes. People are great. Shame is, by mid week this week, it will be over and we are all being dispersed into our units. So far I suspect the whole of the MET is probably a big team and I am sure it will be fun getting finally out and do some work.

Anyway, 3 more days left and a final exam.

The Bill - Week 2

In week 2 we, the trainees, certainly became a team. This was particularly clear after 2 days of Officer Safety Training where we had to "get physical" and beat each other up, well, pretend to at least, so that we could learn how to defend ourselves. Admittedly, these 2 days were one of my best I have ever had. I was on a 2 day high, and my body must have released adrenalin like there was no tomorrow. Self-defence should be taught at schools I think, especially in London and other metropoles like this one. Our trainers are absolutely spot-on.

For the rest of the week we got our uniforms and learned several legal bits such as theft, offensive weapons, etc. We also had 2 exams - one in handcuffing techniques and the other one was an academic one and comprised all subjects taught so far. I managed to achieve 88% which is quite nice.

So, all in all, I still think joining the MET was the right thing to do. The training is absolutely fantastic, the curriculum enables us to learn all important matters in an extremely structured manner, and in fact, it is very funny and relaxed. Well done Training Department! Looking forward to week 3 now.

The Bill - Week 1

My first week passed by and I was extremely exhausted by the time Friday's lessons had finished. I went home and fell to bed and had a deep power nap. Saturday and Sunday I revised and did what I learned at university many, many years back - writing things up, summarizing pages and chapters from the big handout folder, and in the end, it was actually a very reasonable package to learn and review.

Last week we learned the "street" sections of PACE, the Police and Criminal Evidence Act - Stop & Search, Power of Arrest, etc. And then there was also a self-defence part one day which was my biggest challenge. But I think I mastered both parts pretty well.

Group dynamics is interesting. I am one of the oldest with my 39 years. Most people are in their early twenties. What is the best though about the group is its diversity - half men/half women, British, Continental European, and all sorts of racial mixes from around the globe which have integrated into Britain; like me, suppose. This is absolutely perfect and mirrors London's society extremely well.

What I find strange though, compared to Germany, the lack of a written Constitution enables British police to enter private living space only by applying PACE and without a warrant. This would be absolutely non-thinkable in Germany. The new policeman in me says "yes" to this right given by PACE, the German in me is still a bit hesitant to accept it.

All in all, I had an extraordinarily good experience, my class mates are pretty nice and friendly, and my trainers extremely funny and very professional. I am looking forward to week 2.

The Bill

Today, a completely new chapter in my life is going to start - life as a policeman. And no, this is not a joke, but today and for the next 4 weeks I am going to get trained up in the police training facilities in north London and will then work in one of the boroughs on a voluntary basis, 16 hours a month minimum.

Most of my friends and family were asking me why on earth I would do that. There are a few reasons:

1. The Altruistic Reason: I truly believe everybody has to give something back to the community and society. We are all very good in taking and expecting, but giving can be an extremely interesting challenge, too, and it can be fun!

2. The Uniform Reason: I think I have always been fascinated by the police, from childhood on. Strangely enough, I never applied for a job with them when I still lived in Germany, but hey, one gets older and wiser.

3. The Professional Reason: Since I want to also establish myself as Executive Coach (besides my consulting career) I truly believe that getting trained and working as policeman will open my horizons immensely and add to my skill-set.

4. The Leisure Reason: I want to force myself to get out more and do something useful. Temptation is far too high to stay in and play with the computer, watch TV or just potter about when one could do something else.

5. The Social Reason: Extremely interesting to me is the possibility to get to know so many new and interesting people. Especially as freelancer one cannot get to know enough.

So, all in all, this makes sense to me. And I am looking forward to later on, on my Day 1.