Policing

Dialogue:______read aloud in pairs

A: Are you happy with community policing in the area where you live?

B: I used to be really happy. We had a Community Police Support Officer who made it her business to mingle with local people. She even attended the monthly meetings of our Residents' Association. Her work was really exemplary.

A: What happened to her?

B: Well, there was a decision to cut the numbers of CPSOs and to put more money into desk based jobs like fighting Internet based crime such as social grooming or fraud.

A: Did they make her redundant?

B: Yes and No. They ended her contract, but reinterviewed her for a different job description?

A: Was this new job desk based?

B: Not entirely. Her job title was still PSCSO, but they made her cover a much wider area of the city. She could no longer go on regular patrol in our area. Her work was to respond to call outs from a much wider catchment area. We rarely saw her once her job had changed.

A: That's a pity! I expect with less liaison with the police, the process of forming a Neighbourhood Watch group becomes more difficult.