Quality, not quantity, counts in honorary police, says chief

Quality, not quantity, counts in honorary police, says chief

Michel Bougeard, the St Brelade Chef de Police, who joined up in 1984, also disagreed with claims from a former officer that there was a recruitment crisis and said that more younger people were now coming forward, along with people from ethnic minorities.

‘I do not think there is a crisis. We may have low numbers but we do have a lot of quality officers. I, personally, have a core of officers who are very keen and able and have not just been bums on seats that do not do anything,’ he said.

‘I think the honorary police system is working well. The numbers have always fluctuated and they are lower than they have been for a while but it is quality rather than quantity.

‘Recruitment has become more difficult but the honorary police have become a lot more proactive and I can only think of one officer that I have had in the last ten years that has left because they have not wanted to stay in it. Others have left the Island and some have been time-barred by age.’

And Mr Bougeard, who works as a conveyancing manager by day, added that honorary police forces were now becoming more diverse.

He said: ‘We do seem to be getting a lot more young people coming through and applying now.

‘There are also a lot more Polish, Portuguese and Romanian people, which is very helpful too as it allows us to speak to people in other languages.’

In recent years, the honorary police received criticism for allegedly not being professional, but Mr Bougeard rejected this, citing increased training and added that their role had become easier through technological advances.

‘The level of training we receive is far greater than before. When I started we learnt through our peers but now we are trained by the States police,’ he said.

‘We have also been given things that have helped us a lot such as body-worn cameras which, after you switch on, tend to calm difficult situations down.

‘Also, as a Centenier going to court, compared to police reports, video sometimes allows you to see that things were far worse than in the report. It gives a much clearer picture.’

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