57 replies to this topic

[very special]

I spend a good half of my time chasing Special Constables who fall below the 16 hours per month or dont keep up with Personal Safety Training. Some we only see once every few months, they dont assist with any duty requests, try as hard as possible not to communicate or keep in touch. If it gets to this stage why do people want to hang on to their warrant cards? If they fall below the required hours for 3 months in a row, unless they are ill or have an agreed leave of absence they should be forced to resign. I then have to write support plans and review them monthly and then build up evidence before we can tell them to leave. Sometimes it seems easier to get rod of a PC than it does a volunteer. Do other areas have the same issues?

[iComputerSaysNo]

Hi,

I haven't been in very long myself but I have spoken to people in other forces. It seems to be a thing in the Specials but I am sure it is much wider spread in a lot of voluntary organisations. I one force, I know a Special Sergeant that has not done a duty for over six months. It is also prevalent in the CAB which I also volunteer with.

Is there any way you could try to start such a routine to do rice a special that never turns up to resign after a states period of time?

IComputerSaysNo

[Dave SYP]

I spend a good half of my time chasing Special Constables who fall below the 16 hours per month or dont keep up with Personal Safety Training. Some we only see once every few months, they dont assist with any duty requests, try as hard as possible not to communicate or keep in touch. If it gets to this stage why do people want to hang on to their warrant cards? If they fall below the required hours for 3 months in a row, unless they are ill or have an agreed leave of absence they should be forced to resign. I then have to write support plans and review them monthly and then build up evidence before we can tell them to leave. Sometimes it seems easier to get rod of a PC than it does a volunteer. Do other areas have the same issues?

I used to have the same problems and I know that some people have personal problems, work commitments, etc. etc. but if they are not cooperating and think it's all a joke, you have to draw the line somewhere. I know you have to follow HR guidelines, etc. but, in extreme cases I used to do it like this, all formally recorded in writing.

1. Invite them in for an interview with you and a more senior colleague and spell it out in plain terms, giving clear targets and what will happen if they aren't met.
2. When this fails, Invite them in for an interview with you and a more senior colleague and ask them if they would like to resign / final chance to meet targets.
3. When this fails, Invite them in for an interview with you and a more senior colleague and tell them that they have no more chances and you require them to sign a letter of resignation there and then.

As a Section Officer (S/Sgt.), Sub Divisional Officer (S/Insp.) and District Officer (S/Ch.Insp.) I bent over backwards to help those who for genuine reasons could not meet their obligations, but I had no time whatsoever for others who thought they were just there for the ride. I know how frustrated you are feeling right now, but being firm and positive and having the right backing from your senior colleagues will ensure a satisfactory outcome.

[Obsidian_Eclipse]

We're trying to adopt a new system of keeping track of 'mispecials', again its still a fairly lengthy process but gives plenty of chances for the individual to get back on duty. There are many reasons why specials drop off the radar and they need to be dealt with, it could be a dissagreement with a particular officer or even bullying!

We recently made a simple 2 sheet form which evidences contact with a mispecial over 4 months. An initial contact questionaire for the s/sgt followed by an action plan and a monthly review for the next 3 months with phone and letter contact.. The last step upon failing to keep in touch is forced resignation, seizure of keys, uniform and warrant card.

Obviously, officers deserve to be treated with dignity and respect. Its important that we are professional but compassionate, afterall we're all volunteers and i'd prefer to get at the heart of the matter and give someone a chance at least!

[Markdn]

I expect a lot of forces have similar problems.

It was interesting I once heard a long serving senior SC (from another force) refer to some of these under performing SC's only being there as they had "Willy Wonka's Golden Ticket", i.e. the warrant card...

Interesting perspective.

Personally I try to put support in place where I can to assist SC's getting into duties. I appreciate not everyone can do the standard Friday/Saturday night duties. We also need to be aware the less SC's do the further their confidence levels drop and we need to engage at an early stage and deal with this. An SC with very low confidence will equally have low hours as they are scared of coming in...

Communication is a big thing, but don't forget it's 2 way thing. We need to be aware of any issues that may affect the SC's hours and although we do welfare checks some of that responsibility also falls with the individual to tell us, i.e. change in job means they can't work Saturdays anymore or similar.

Of course there are others that are simply not going to make it no matter how much support is giving and yes they need to be dealt with in line with your local force policies and procedures. For example official letters about lack of hours, if no improvement then can result in dismissal in some cases.

Edited by Markdn, 19 June 2012 - 09:14 AM.

[Soliloquy]

For a lot of people, being a SC has to come second, especially when you have commitments such as a wife, kids and a job. I guess it's a different story if they are hard to contact and stuff though, that would get frustrating to manage.

[Markdn]

For a lot of people, being a SC has to come second, especially when you have commitments such as a wife, kids and a job. I guess it's a different story if they are hard to contact and stuff though, that would get frustrating to manage.

I think that goes without saying but i reiterate to my team its the following order:

1. Personal life - i.e. family
2. Day job - this pays the mortgage/rent/bills
3. Specials - Without the support of 1+2 you will never get to 3...

[TROOPER8555]

From my perspective having done nearly 7 years now, commitment to the SC role is an organic thing, bit like getting a g/f getting engaged and then getting married you want different things from the relationship at different stages.

I remember first starting and ramming in 40 hours + a month now i some times struggle to maintain the minimum.

Why is this because the thrill has reduced, the reality has kicked in and life priorities have changed.

There is no silver bullet, management course of action, training plan, aid action etc....Should i be forced to resign because i cannot keep the hours up
for a job i love and do for free is this fair?

Edited by TROOPER8555, 19 June 2012 - 10:07 AM.

[crunchybits]

You can also turn this round - why are your SCs not coming in to work? Are the duties on offer unrewarding, do they feel exploited, do senior management value them, what retention procedures are in place - have senior management set the right strategies in place to encourage SC to parade. It's easy to 'blame' volunteers for becoming disaffected but equally they may not be coming because of the way they are being managed.

There is an interesting case study in the Met of a Borough that went from being a nothing special Borough to being one of the top performing BOCUs (% doing hours, IPS levels, Stop/Search) and then back to third quartile all in the space of four years.

There should be a'fast track' process for dismissing officers that don't do their hours but equally when you see a dramatic shift in performance the service should be picking up on this as well. It should be as equally hard to dismiss an officer for service related reasons as a regular but not doing annualised hours should be a case in it's own right.

BTW 16 hours a month if you look at most SC units even your hardest workers often won't do that - think August /Christmas periods. PST should be a 'red flag' issue since the SC have effectively made themselves undeployable and breeched lawful orders.

[General Purpose]

I spend a good half of my time chasing Special Constables who fall below the 16 hours per month or dont keep up with Personal Safety Training. Some we only see once every few months, they dont assist with any duty requests, try as hard as possible not to communicate or keep in touch. If it gets to this stage why do people want to hang on to their warrant cards? If they fall below the required hours for 3 months in a row, unless they are ill or have an agreed leave of absence they should be forced to resign. I then have to write support plans and review them monthly and then build up evidence before we can tell them to leave. Sometimes it seems easier to get rod of a PC than it does a volunteer. Do other areas have the same issues?

I think forcing someone to resign after 3 months is a little bit harsh, personally. Last month I struggled to do the 16 hours per month, mainly because of my shifts at work and short turn around times. If I was told to resign because of that, I would have been sending a strongly worded letter to the CC.

Also, safety training qualifications, are quite important and, in my mind, that person should not be allowed back out on the streets until they have completed their refresher. That's more for their and their colleagues' safety than anything else.

With regards to duties: they are not obliged to "fill gaps", in fact we don't even have to turn up on Saturday nights! If I received constant emails saying: 'We are short this Saturday, can you come in?' whilst I would (if I wasn't working and Mr. GP said I could then I would) but for people who work 9-5 M-F and have a family, kids, etc... If they kept getting these then I would be pretty annoyed as I would feel like I'm only being used for that purpose - a gap filler!

Have you considered asking if any of them would like a break or someone to speak to? I do personally feel the 3 months is a bit of a short fall personally. If someone works M-F 9-5 in reality, they only have 24 rest days which, if they had a family, and spent every Saturday as a Special leaves them with 12 days to spend with the family.

Perhaps make that 3 months into 6 and then if people don't meet the minimum then, do something about it as 6 months is an extended period of time.

[Markdn]

You can also turn this round - why are your SCs not coming in to work? Are the duties on offer unrewarding, do they feel exploited, do senior management value them, what retention procedures are in place - have senior management set the right strategies in place to encourage SC to parade. It's easy to 'blame' volunteers for becoming disaffected but equally they may not be coming because of the way they are being managed.

My bold - I have seen this occur in past where all the SC's booked on for their normal local duties were told (by senior management) they were being taken off to do a particular unpopular duty for the foreseeable future. Went down like a lead balloon and majority just cancelled their duties...

We should be aware of our teams motivations of why they want to do SC duties, and where possible offer the duties that they want. We have seen that doing particular duties you are confident and have an interest in can boost performance.

We should also not loose sight that although linked, performance and attendance are 2 different things...

Edited by Markdn, 19 June 2012 - 10:21 AM.

[ImaSC]

Maybe my perspective on this is different to those currently serving, as I am only just starting out. I feel that we chose to become Specials and were fully aware that the job would require a minimum of 16 hours per month. We commit to those hours and should do all that is possible to ensure we meet our commitment. If we aren't able to commit to this, after three months, then I see it fair to resign and let someone else commit to the hours we cannot. If you want to do the job then finding these hours shouldn’t be a problem. Obviously personal reasons, illness etc. is exempt from this opinion.

[Dale-Staffs]

Some interesting points above!

My opinion =

I am married with children and work 9 to 5, I have never missed doing the minimum hours yet and can not see that I will because I enjoy the voluntary work I do with the Specials, I dont see it much different than someone spending their time fishing or playing golf: you are spending your spare time doing something you enjoy (but being a special helps the local community as well)

I agree that if you are constantly used for the boring, mundane tasks then this will have an effect on the enjoyment you get which will in turn demotivate you and make you not want to go in, if that is the case then speak up and tell someone, if you get no joy then escalate to the next level and keep going until you get an answer.

16 hours a month is not a great deal to ask and yes I understand we are volunteers and we dont get paid but it was made quite clear before we signed on the line and took the oath that 16 hours is a minimum, even though we are volunteers we are part of a disciplined force and are expected to act as such, there are many many people who would love to join up and would commit to the 16 hours (and more) but they can not get in because the quota of specials is taken up (in my force anyway), unfortunatly some of them are not doing the agreed minimum hours.

If you can not do the 16 hours a month that you agreed to then arrange a meeting to explain why or organise a leave of absence or agree an action plan, if you do not do this then expect to have the meetings and eventually the request to hand back your warrant card.

I think 3 months is more than enough time to do one of the above and if you do not then you do not deserve to hold a position of responsibility and should be expected to resign.

This may be straight to the point but I dont think I have said anything that is not true.

Regards

D

[Merlin820]

I think forcing someone to resign after 3 months is a little bit harsh, personally. Last month I struggled to do the 16 hours per month, mainly because of my shifts at work and short turn around times. If I was told to resign because of that, I would have been sending a strongly worded letter to the CC.

Also, safety training qualifications, are quite important and, in my mind, that person should not be allowed back out on the streets until they have completed their refresher. That's more for their and their colleagues' safety than anything else.

With regards to duties: they are not obliged to "fill gaps", in fact we don't even have to turn up on Saturday nights! If I received constant emails saying: 'We are short this Saturday, can you come in?' whilst I would (if I wasn't working and Mr. GP said I could then I would) but for people who work 9-5 M-F and have a family, kids, etc... If they kept getting these then I would be pretty annoyed as I would feel like I'm only being used for that purpose - a gap filler!

Have you considered asking if any of them would like a break or someone to speak to? I do personally feel the 3 months is a bit of a short fall personally. If someone works M-F 9-5 in reality, they only have 24 rest days which, if they had a family, and spent every Saturday as a Special leaves them with 12 days to spend with the family.

Perhaps make that 3 months into 6 and then if people don't meet the minimum then, do something about it as 6 months is an extended period of time.

I think the point the OP is making is specials that are falling below the required minimum are not communicating alongside not pulling their weight and I can see totally how frustrating that is. And if they don't wish to communicate and still don't appear then I would see that as a reasonable assumption they don't wish to continue as a special unless they tell me otherwise, which they clearly aren't.

I had a personal family issue that kept me from duties a few months back. I told someone and was given leave, with no hassle. I also had to take some time out last year due to a bad back, again, I told the boss, all was well. Communication works and keeps people informed.

And what's the problem with gap filling? You are right in that we are not obliged to fill gaps but why shouldn't we be asked to? We get weekly emails requesting officers for various duties and ops if more are required. Sometimes that comes from the special hierarchy or the reg. When I, along with my colleagues, turn up at the station at short notice for a weekend night duty it is very much appreciated by the regs and sometimes we can be a vital extra unit to support regular colleagues, who see that we are more than willing to much in and do our bit.

[crunchybits]

SC are volunteering their time for minimal renumeration to assist the police service. If they are successfully managed in line with their expectations then hours soar. When you have local management taking decisions in their own interests ignoring the fact that volunteers have the ultimate privilege of voting with their feet then hours can rapidly decline. That's the challenge of managing volunteers versus regulars. Since the service is paying regulars they have a degree of control at the lower levels of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. Volunteers need to be managed towards to the top end of that model.

The service also has the potential to significantly increase the visible presence of officers with a minimal investment and in addition by recruiting from the ranks of SC save themselves millions. Perhaps if some of the savings from recruitment were invested in retaining and improving the experience of volunteer officers by the regular service then you would not see these challenges.

One of the arguments that is frequently played out in the MPS and others is the number of police officers that the service has. When if you look at the MSC 50% of officers are not doing their hours and the service lost circa 600 officers (Source : http://www.whatdothe...834 Table 2.pdf)

If the service had invested some of the £120,000 in training their existing officers then maybe they would reduce the 20% attrition rate. At the moment the debate is focussed on the recuitment numbers and really should be on how the service gets 'best value' out of it's volunteer workforce. It's a two way street ...and "their inability to train specials post-foundation level, not allocate them the appropriate equipment to do the job (such as being made to share a radio!), no focus on professional development and generally being treat SCs like pond life." perhaps goes some way to explain the low hours/attrition rates

http://www.bbc.co.uk...work_their.html

Edited by crunchybits, 19 June 2012 - 12:45 PM.

[wanabe]

My station has 25 specials on the books however since I have been in (9 months) I have only ever seen the same 6/7 specials. We can see who has booked on and there's about 18 specials who have not booked one shift in that time!! Not even training events, it really is shocking. People need to be honest with themselves and hold their hands up and say I just can't manage it anymore. I understand that work/family and other commitments come first however nobody will have a go at them or tell them off for being honest and handing their warrent card back.

[Dave SYP]

The sub-division I went to in 1992 had amongst its establishment 6 lazy, incompetent and absent officers on the books. Within two months of my arrival, using proven methods for dealing with situations like this we were 6 less officers and a more productive team.

Obviously there are situations where sensitivity, flexibility and cooperation are expected, but, I don''t think you can 'beat about the bush' with this. It is very important that everyone is clear what is expected and to let officers just go on and on doing nothing for months on end does no good for team morale. It also shows the management of the service in a very negative light.

[very special]

I expect a lot of forces have similar problems.

It was interesting I once heard a long serving senior SC (from another force) refer to some of these under performing SC's only being there as they had "Willy Wonka's Golden Ticket", i.e. the warrant card...

Interesting perspective.

Personally I try to put support in place where I can to assist SC's getting into duties. I appreciate not everyone can do the standard Friday/Saturday night duties. We also need to be aware the less SC's do the further their confidence levels drop and we need to engage at an early stage and deal with this. An SC with very low confidence will equally have low hours as they are scared of coming in...

Communication is a big thing, but don't forget it's 2 way thing. We need to be aware of any issues that may affect the SC's hours and although we do welfare checks some of that responsibility also falls with the individual to tell us, i.e. change in job means they can't work Saturdays anymore or similar.

Of course there are others that are simply not going to make it no matter how much support is giving and yes they need to be dealt with in line with your local force policies and procedures. For example official letters about lack of hours, if no improvement then can result in dismissal in some cases.

I sent a letter to one chap recorded delivery, he said he didnt get get the letter (i have proof someone in the house signed for it). I donr want to lose anyone but respect goes both ways.

[The Constable]

Hi,

I haven't been in very long myself but I have spoken to people in other forces. It seems to be a thing in the Specials but I am sure it is much wider spread in a lot of voluntary organisations. I one force, I know a Special Sergeant that has not done a duty for over six months. It is also prevalent in the CAB which I also volunteer with.

Is there any way you could try to start such a routine to do rice a special that never turns up to resign after a states period of time?

IComputerSaysNo

Aye. Tis a problem at St John Ambulance too!

[very special]

I think forcing someone to resign after 3 months is a little bit harsh, personally. Last month I struggled to do the 16 hours per month, mainly because of my shifts at work and short turn around times. If I was told to resign because of that, I would have been sending a strongly worded letter to the CC.

Also, safety training qualifications, are quite important and, in my mind, that person should not be allowed back out on the streets until they have completed their refresher. That's more for their and their colleagues' safety than anything else.

With regards to duties: they are not obliged to "fill gaps", in fact we don't even have to turn up on Saturday nights! If I received constant emails saying: 'We are short this Saturday, can you come in?' whilst I would (if I wasn't working and Mr. GP said I could then I would) but for people who work 9-5 M-F and have a family, kids, etc... If they kept getting these then I would be pretty annoyed as I would feel like I'm only being used for that purpose - a gap filler!

Have you considered asking if any of them would like a break or someone to speak to? I do personally feel the 3 months is a bit of a short fall personally. If someone works M-F 9-5 in reality, they only have 24 rest days which, if they had a family, and spent every Saturday as a Special leaves them with 12 days to spend with the family.

Perhaps make that 3 months into 6 and then if people don't meet the minimum then, do something about it as 6 months is an extended period of time.

I have no issues if the person keeps us up to date and communicates with us. We offer leave of absences etc but when they dont do PST for over a year and become non operational, whats the point?

You can also turn this round - why are your SCs not coming in to work? Are the duties on offer unrewarding, do they feel exploited, do senior management value them, what retention procedures are in place - have senior management set the right strategies in place to encourage SC to parade. It's easy to 'blame' volunteers for becoming disaffected but equally they may not be coming because of the way they are being managed.

There is an interesting case study in the Met of a Borough that went from being a nothing special Borough to being one of the top performing BOCUs (% doing hours, IPS levels, Stop/Search) and then back to third quartile all in the space of four years.

There should be a'fast track' process for dismissing officers that don't do their hours but equally when you see a dramatic shift in performance the service should be picking up on this as well. It should be as equally hard to dismiss an officer for service related reasons as a regular but not doing annualised hours should be a case in it's own right.

BTW 16 hours a month if you look at most SC units even your hardest workers often won't do that - think August /Christmas periods. PST should be a 'red flag' issue since the SC have effectively made themselves undeployable and breeched lawful orders.

Okay to answer your points:

Specials can work with response, NPT, Street Crime, Traffic as they please as long as they try and assist with any special duty requests. Our District Commander is fab, he attends our monthly meeting, provided us with a huge locker room, own office, buys the team a christmas hamper, bought personal issue airwaves, covert harnesses, just to name a few. I can honestly say that all regular supervision value Special's and on the One occasion we had an issue it was resolved quickly. The Special's management team and proactive, fully operational and are well liked by SC and regulars. I think apart from a door to door collection service we are as supportive as any other force.

[i-plod]

sorry to go off topic but my OST is due in July. I didn't respond to emails in time to book on for a course during a 1 month leave of absence (getting married - honeymoon) and when I got back duly responded and have been booked onto a November course.
No one has mentioned this being an issue but if I have a some kind of altercation or get injured could this cause problems?

*sorry if its off topic just reminded me.

[wanabe]

sorry to go off topic but my OST is due in July. I didn't respond to emails in time to book on for a course during a 1 month leave of absence (getting married - honeymoon) and when I got back duly responded and have been booked onto a November course.
No one has mentioned this being an issue but if I have a some kind of altercation or get injured could this cause problems?

*sorry if its off topic just reminded me.

Could it? YES
Will it? UNLIKELY

[Jeebs]

Do they have a document that outlines "conditions of service" or a contract of any sort? In my 2 years I've never been given a document outlining what's is expected of me in terms of hours, types of duties etc etc, nor have I had any sort of document detailing what I can expect from the force in terms of legal aid if a complaint gets made against me (because the Fed hates SCs), what happens if I get injured, just to name a few things.

Unless you provide people with a clear document which they have to sign that outlines this sort of thing and what SCs can expect from the force, I don't really think you can complain. People have busy lives and will most likely take a weekend of paid overtime before volunteering for duties, but that is the nature of the Special Constabulary, we fit our policing around our families and work.

Edited by Jeebs, 19 June 2012 - 04:39 PM.

[Burnsy2023]

sorry to go off topic but my OST is due in July. I didn't respond to emails in time to book on for a course during a 1 month leave of absence (getting married - honeymoon) and when I got back duly responded and have been booked onto a November course.
No one has mentioned this being an issue but if I have a some kind of altercation or get injured could this cause problems?

*sorry if its off topic just reminded me.

The renewals in Hampshire have a little flexibility, but as long as you are booked for a course in the near future by the renewal date, the training dept seems ok with that.

[Derf]

Those that have not been turning up for over 6 months have the potential to become liabilities when they do decide to turn up. They won't be current with up to date legislation / proceedures etc.

I too spend many hours chasing up those who never return my calls / texts / emails. They have now been told they will not be operational until such time as they are current with training (Personal safety etc). This then is seen by them as a negative factor and puts them off further from turning up.
My view is that as Personal responsibility is a key factor of policing, how can I consider letting someone out on the streets who isn't prepared to take some personal responsibility?
Granted you need to know when to use the carrot and when to use the stick, but sure as eggs are eggs, I'm not going to reward someone or bribe someone with 'glory jobs' if they haven't been in for some time.
I also get frustrated when specials try to hide behind the fact they are volunteers. Granted, i accept they give their time freely, but with that comes a promise of some sort of comitment.