20 minute read
Q&A with Police Constable Beth Stewart
Q&A with Police Constable Beth Stewart
In this feature, we delve into the experiences of a police officer who embarked on the path of obtaining a law degree before donning the uniform. From the lecture halls where legal theories are dissected to the streets where those theories transform into tangible justice, Beth Stewart shares insights into the intricacies of blending the worlds of law and law enforcement.
Q.1 Beth, what inspired you to pursue a law degree before joining the police force?
I’ve been interested in pursuing a career in law since I was around twelve years old, when I first watched Legally Blonde (really not the best reason to go to university I know). Since watching it, I decided I wanted to be a barrister for the Crown Prosecution Service. Criminal law has always been the area I wanted to go into most, and it has been the one thing which has always interested meand it was always nice to know that in some way, you’ve made a difference to someone’s life who was affected by a crime, no matter how small it may seem.
When I went to college, I chose three A-Levels to study: law, psychology and English literature and language. Whilst I tried my hardest in all of the lessons, law was really the only subject I was interested in right from the start, and would happily do as much work as I needed to with it, both inside and outside of college. I have always been extremely interested in learning about all different areas of law, but criminal law was the one thing that always fascinated me (and at times because of the seriousness of some crimes, horrified me). This was the same at university, except we went into lockdown during the second year and so did not get any practice in terms of going into courtrooms to conduct moot’s or other mock competitions, and I realised I did not have the confidence to say I wanted to go into a courtroom each day as a career, because I did not believe this is something I would be good at.
From speaking to one of my lecturers in my final year, I realised that barristers often have no contact with victims, right up until the day of the case. I work well under pressure, and I did not think for a minute I would struggle to be able to put things together when having to go into a courtroom, but I did not like the fact that the role entailed something which is not very personal and is not based on building relationships of trust with clients. I decided when a position became available in the control room within the police that I would do this as a part time job whilst finishing my degree.
The more I worked in the control room, the more I began to realise I loved the nature of the job, and I loved the fact it was extremely victim focused. I began to realise more and more that I wanted to do the job I had been doing in the control room as a career, but out on response, where I can help support individuals from the start of the investigation, right to the end. I think I was about two months into my time in the control room by the time I realised
I could see myself being happy within the force. I finally bit the bullet in October 2022 and applied to be a Constable, which I then started in August 2023.
Q2. What are you most looking forward to in your new role?
I am looking forward to a wide array of different challenges and jobs each day. Before I joined the police as a Constable, I worked in the Control Room as a communications operator - this entailed responding to enquiries the public had, answering 999 calls and 101 calls, as well as deploying officers to jobs and running checks to ensure both officer and public safety.
From working in the control room, I already knew that no two days are the same in policing, and this is the most exciting and rewarding part. You know that when you come into work, as I have said previously, that you are going to help people when they need it the most, as well as gathering enough evidence to take dangerous people off the streets and reduce criminality.
I am looking forward to being able to manage and make my own workload. It is not simply a case of responding to incidents which are called in, but also helping to build public trust and good relationships with people in the area you cover. You can speak to members of the public for a variety of different things - to help with further enquiries, to help establish facts of a case, to speak with victims and to gather and develop intelligence.
There are so many different routes you can choose to take in your career within the police, and you will be supported to move and train in new roles when you wish to do so. I love the fact that there are so many different paths my career can go down, and I’m probably not even aware of what half of those options are yet.
Q3. In what ways did your legal training prepare you (or not) for the challenges of police work?
I do not think anything will really prepare you for the challenges of police work.
I have been very lucky in the fact that I had some knowledge of what the police deal with due to my time in the control room, and it has helped with my knowledge surrounding intelligence, how to deal with certain jobs, the right questions to ask to establish facts of an alleged offence, and also how to empathise with people who need our help the most.
I do think my law degree has helped me in terms of studying certain modules, such as criminal law, public law, and the law of evidence. These modules helped me to realise the role of the police within society, different offences which can be committed against the person and against property and also what evidence is required to enable a criminal prosecution to be supported successfully, to ensure justice. They have helped me in terms of the academic side of policing throughout my training, and to know I have some level of a good understanding of them operationally too. However, you must remember that in some instances, the academic side will not always go hand in hand with the operational side, and this is something which I am trying to remember each day.
I have recently finished my classroom training for the police and have started my response training by being in company with a tutor for the next twelve weeks. I have come to understand that at no point so far, have I felt that I know all there is to know about a certain area, and from speaking to people, I think you learn new things each day. Classroom training sets you up to have an understanding of the points you must be able to evidentially prove to gather evidence for an investigation; how to conduct interviews; how to deal with building cases and how to communicate with the public; along with a lot of other skills and qualities you develop along the way to help you when you go out on response such as personal safety training.
Nobody can prepare you fully for when you go out on your tutor phase - it is an entirely different ball game, but in an exciting way. You soon realise that even though you are dealing with very similar jobs, each case is completely individual to itself. There are so many ways to reach a positive outcome in each incident you respond to, and you must be aware that some people may have different vulnerabilities which also determine a different outcome from one case to the next. You speak to people from a vast array of backgrounds, and you get to constantly learn new things from them.
Q4. How do you apply your legal knowledge in your day-today work as a police officer?
I think the legal knowledge I have developed since starting my degree in 2019, to finishing my classroom training at the end of 2023, has continually developed and grown, but I think it is fascinating when you realise you will always get to learn there are so many different things to know and understand about every offence and way of dealing with things, that you will always have more information to learn which helps develop an even better understanding of what you already know.
To some extent, in terms of applying the legal knowledge I already have, you soon realise that some things do become like second nature to you in terms of knowing how to identify a certain offence and knowing what powers and policies the police have in terms of certain areas such as powers to arrest, powers to enter and surrounding stop and search. These were covered during my time in university too, so it is something I was already aware of before my training, but with things like this, you do have to be certain that you are confident with what each part of legislation covers so that you are always acting in a lawful, necessary, and proportionate manner.
Q5. Have you sought mentorship within the police force or legal community, and how has it influenced your career decisions?
I know a few people who work, or have worked, within the police force and I spoke to them regarding their background in the force and what advice they would give. The people I have spoken with have not just been a police officer, but have also been in the control room, or been PCSO’s or special constables.
I did not seek this for influencing my career decisions as such, but more to speak with them about their careers and what they would advise me in terms of the application process and to explain what their experiences were when they first joined. The only bit of advice I have sought from someone in terms of my actual career, is speaking with a serving firearms Sergeant, as this is the route I decided I wanted to go down before I applied. He was able to tell me about his experience in his role, about what the application entails, the pros, and cons of the job, and as a Sergeant, what he looks out for in someone who has applied for the role.
It has been invaluable gaining insight from serving officers, both in Cheshire and other forces, because they have been able to tell me what they have experienced, and what their force priorities are, as each force has different things they wish to really focus on. I have spoken to many people, and there is nobody who has told me the same thing. Everyone has different lengths in service, has had different experiences and specialities, but they have always had the same overall passion and love for their job. They have loved every minute of it, and I think it is an extremely special and privileged position to be in, to go into work each day and love what you do.
Q6. Have your career aspirations evolved over time, and if so, how has your legal background played a role in shaping them?
Now, I am trying not to aim to go into a particular role as I think it is always a really good idea to stay on response for a few years. This is because whilst you are out on response, you are able to home in on your intelligence gathering skills, speaking with victims, dealing with incidents as soon as they are reported into us, and also gives you chance to deal with what are known as volume crime, before you consider moving to different departments. It also allows a basic level of interviewing skills and dealing with case file building before you look at going to train in a more specialist department. This is not the same for everybody however, and there are always options you can take, such as taking your national detective’s exam, when you have finished your training, and you will receive equally as much insight from doing this. This is just my opinion on what I want to do, as I feel this is the best way for me to learn.
When I first joined as a Constable, I was particularly keen to eventually join firearms or the Roads and Crimes Unit. I am trying not to solely focus on this though, as I would like to do at least a few years on response first. I genuinely think I am yet to learn about so many other units the police have, and I do not want to close the door to any options before I have even had the chance to get to know about them. So, for now, I am keeping an open mind and will speak to different departments about their roles and what they do, so that I can continue to learn. I think I will leave it a few years before I start to think about what I want to move onto next. Most importantly, my career in response is only just beginning, and I think I am more focused on wanting to learn more and become comfortable in the role - it is still very fresh and exciting to me, and I want to enjoy this feeling as I know there is so much more to come!
Q7. Are there specific areas of law that you find particularly relevant or useful in your current role?
I think the obvious thing which is the most relevant and useful to my current role is the criminal law module we studied during my second year of university. In this module, we covered so many offences surrounding offences against the person and the property, that it really helped me to build a solid foundation of an understanding of what each offence entails. Criminal law has always been something which has interested me, and it is the one module which I can hand on heart say I put 110% into every week. I always really enjoyed learning about the case law and different areas which the courts have differentiated between. I think in terms of the case law preparation reading we had to do each week, it also helped me to understand each case is going to be completely different when it comes to what is, and what is not, an offence in each case and the reasons as to why.
Q8. How do you stay updated on legal developments while working in law enforcement?
I am quite lucky that as a force, we have internal updates which are sent to us each week for everyone in the force, no matter what rank or role you are in. This includes developments internally, including different procedural changes to some of our policies or the way we respond to certain incidents, but also includes external legal developments which include the UK as a whole; including
changes to the way the CPS may operate with certain offences that go to court, or changes to legislation which the Government has passed. It also covers any national force priorities that are looked at and any additional policies put into place in the force too.
I do have an interest still in developments within legal practice, and admittedly this is something I have not really followed as much as I would like to, but I have promised myself I am going to make a conscious effort to look at this now, but this is more out of the fact I am interested in it than anything. Overall, the updates we have weekly within the force are extremely helpful in keeping me up to date with new changes.
Q9. For individuals considering a similar path, what advice would you give to someone with a law degree interested in joining the police force?
My main advice would be don’t feel as though you have to pursue a career in legal practice if you are not 100% sure it is something you wish to do as a long-term career. During my second year of university, I became really uncertain about whether I really wanted to go on and train to be a barrister. It was a lot of money and commitment to go on and study the BTC if it was not something I was sure I wanted to do, and I was already considering the idea of applying for the police at this point. Obviously, there is a lot which comes alongside choosing to join the BTC as a post-graduate course, and there is a five-year trigger window afterwards to find a chambers. To me, it was a lot of pressure and money for something I was not sure I wanted to do, and so I wanted to explore other options I had been interested in, mainly the police.
I created a LinkedIn profile during my second year of university and began networking with officers that I had added, and asking them questions about their career, how they got into the job and any advice they had for people considering joining.
I was very lucky that Cheshire Police held a careers event via our university careers hub for the control room, and they explained the process of the application, what the job entailed and what qualities and characteristics they look for in people who apply for the role. When I applied and was successful, I then began to look at internal bulletin boards, and was lucky that in the control room, there are plenty of Sergeants and Inspectors who you can speak to, and they are always more than happy to answer questions you have.
My advice to anybody who wants to join the Police - gain as much insight into the role and network with as many people as you can. I have never spoken with an officer who is not willing to speak about what they do, and they all speak about their job with such enthusiasm and passion. Cheshire offer Q&A insights into the job when they re-open their applications, so people can discuss things that they are unsure about. I am unsure whether all forces offer this, but I cannot imagine why they wouldn’t. There are also several advice groups on social media such as Facebook, which consists of members who are applicants and serving officers, who are happy to answer queries.
You can also volunteer as a special constable, which gives you an insight into what the role of a police officer entails. You go through some basic training before going out with a tutor - the only difference is because you volunteer, you can choose the hours you wish to go in which work for you. This will give you first-hand information about what the job has to offer and what you would be doing if you were a police constable.
I have never once regretted my decision to join the police, both in the control room and as a constable, and I am extremely proud and lucky to say this is my career. I have loved every minute of it so far and even though I am still extremely new in service, I truly believe this is now going to be my career, and I made the right decision in going down the legal enforcement route as opposed to legal practice.
Q10. How can people find out more about opportunities available?
Follow social media pages for forces, look at their chosen force’s career pages to learn more about the vacancies they have, network with people you know and speak with your chosen forces HR department. There are so many ways of gaining an insight into things you may be unsure about - and I can hand on heart say that whoever you speak with will give you the best help and advice they can give you.
Q11. What does the application process consist of and initial training?
The application process can seem quite lengthy and intimidating - you have to fill in an expression of interest, before then filling out an application form with questions surrounding why you want to do the job and to see whether you possess certain qualities and skills that they are looking for. After this, you will then have some form of written exercise, where they are looking to see whether you can answer questions provided to you - this, in my opinion, does not require you to have an in-depth knowledge of the law or the police itself. It is simply to see whether you can make the best decision to reach a positive outcome, and whether you know what can be suggested to help reach a decision at an incident. There is then a final interview, where you are asked questions to see what kind of person you are - my best advice is simply to be yourself and do not try and make yourself be someone you are not. You would be surprised at the number of examples you have from your day-to-day life, without any previous experience in a policing background, that you can use to answer these questions. Finally, there is a fitness test which is the bleep test and a medical assessment, and vetting.
My advice for any preparation for the application process is to have a look at force and national priorities in prevention and tackling crime, have a look at what the force you are applying for has recently published in terms of things they are doing to help with this, and to then familiarise yourself with the Code of Ethics, as this is always at the heart of everything we do within policing. For the final interview, they will explain exactly what they advise you to do for preparing for the interview, but I would say, write a list of examples you have dealt with in your life - from personal, career and other areas - and then look at what skills and qualities they have enabled you to develop.
Each force’s initial training will be different, my training was an eighteen-week course. This consisted of learning and gaining an understanding of what policing really is and its foundations; crimes; crime prevention; case file building; conducting interviews; building good relationships with the public and had personal safety training - this is just a very brief insight into what is covered. The staff who teach you are all serving officers and Sergeants, and I could not have been luckier with the tutors I had. Each one had their own specialities, and all brought something different to the table in terms of what they could teach you and share with you about their own experiences. They all loved teaching, and they helped shape us into having the confidence to believe in our own abilities and believe we really did have the makings of an officer.
I believe having the staff we did really helped me to prepare in the best way possible to become ready to go out onto response - they all helped you to believe in yourself, and never let you lose confidence in what we were capable of. The enthusiasm they all brought to training each day is something that I am lucky enough to say I was able to experience, and was passed onto me, to get out there and make a difference and begin with the makings of an exceptional career. ■
