New officers fit the Bill

Rioting in London, robberies in Auckland and patrolling the streets of Glasgow were all in a day’s work for the latest cohort of constables to join Mandurah Police.

Four new general duties officers got straight to work attending calls across the city recently, as part of a State Government promise to provide 50 extra police across the State before the end of the year.

Former UK Metropolitan Police officer Constable Laura Hayles said her first posting in WA had been vastly different to working the streets of London, but the skills she had gained during her years of service had helped prepare her to take on any role.

“It has been very different to working in London – but I think the skills you gain can be applied anywhere and the principles of policing are the same,” she said.

“I spent seven years with the Met — one thing that stands out in memory of my time there was manning the control room during the riots in 2011.”

Also from the UK, First Constable Ryan Devine joins the Mandurah force after seven years with Strathclyde Police in Scotland.

Const. Devine said common Mandurah crime trends, including burglary, assault and domestic incidents, tended to be similar to those he routinely dealt with in Scotland.

“Even geographically, the areas are very similar – my previous experience is on coastal areas, albeit the weather here has been better, even in winter,” he said.

Fellow First Constable Kelly Phillips said she was used to dealing with up to 20 crimes per shift, following several years experience with South Auckland and Greater Manchester police forces.

“I spent three-and-a-half years with the criminal investigation branch in South Auckland – sometimes we could be dealing with a murder and at least three robberies per shift,” she said.