Real Coppers vs Plastic Coppers ?
 

All the carry on about cutting front line services & they come up with this bull as an answer ? Unbelievable !

Police recruits 'must first work as volunteers' - Crime, UK - The Independent

Tell me I'm reading this wrong ! The imitation Plods WHO AREN'T Coppers ! & CAN'T arrest someone can get 26,000 K, Yet someone who genuinely wants to be a proper Copper earns 23,000 K (and that for their first 2 years) are being asked to act as volunteers (forgoing a wage ?) So all the grief & aggro for less than what the Placebo Plod gets ??? No wonder the Country is in such a state ! Sad times indeed. :(

Re: Real Coppers vs Plastic Coppers ?
 

If you want to be a police officer, be a hobby bobby first

Re: Real Coppers vs Plastic Coppers ?
 

To add further water onto boiling oil !

PCSOs 'paid £7.8m to detect 50 crimes' - Crime, UK - The Independent

What a bonus ! Some good detectoring that (the expression Monkeys & Peanuts springs to mind here or rather coconuts would be more apt :rolleyes:)

Re: Real Coppers vs Plastic Coppers ?
 

Heaven forbid Dave your not saying that money is being wasted are you :eek:

Re: Real Coppers vs Plastic Coppers ?
 

I can believe it.

What I cannot believe is that a volunteer gets paid more than a real officer.

Thats not right, shows how screwed up things are.

Re: Real Coppers vs Plastic Coppers ?
 

You lot seem very confused over this story. I assume it is because you are currently drunk or you have been reading the 'Independent', either of which results in a distortion of reality. Most probably a combination of both.

There are 3 types of cops:

Regular Cops (Paid)

PCSO's (Paid, with limited powers)

Volunteer Cops (Unpaid)

The idea being mooted is that rather than put trainee regular cops through 25 weeks of training at cop school - learning basic law, first aid, self defence and ethnic and gay awareness - formal training is scrapped and anyone seeking a career in the police service does their basic training for 18 months on the job, as a part time volunteer for probably about 10 hours a week. This a a dam good idea - you will get more motivated cops, better trained and at less expense.

Re: Real Coppers vs Plastic Coppers ?
 

Yes and many of the regular Police Force have been "Specials" before they joined

Re: Real Coppers vs Plastic Coppers ?
 

No not saying that, more like ....... Ah yes ! Mindlessly squandered would be my preferred opinion !

Re: Real Coppers vs Plastic Coppers ?
 

Thats true we need real police with real powers to sort this lot out these days,and they have a hard enough job dealing with the sub human mutants that roam the streets.

Re: Real Coppers vs Plastic Coppers ?
 

Really don't see how you arrive at that conclusion ? Cheaper yes, but more motivated & better trained ? We're talking a TA mentality here ! The Territorials (who do a good job in support of regular forces) are still only civilians in uniform, Soldiering is not their career they do it as a hobby, OK a highly dangerous & demanding hobby, but a hobby non the less.

Therefore the same sort of mentality & attitude would pervade these apprentice Coppers if they aren't under contract. All the time & effort training them (incidentally removing other Coppers from their duties) would be wasted when after 12-15 Months they turn round & say "No thanks mate ! Don't fancy all the guff & sheeite you have to put up with, I'm doing one & staying a City Banker raking it in !"

No, not the best solution by a long ways to my reckoning.

Re: Real Coppers vs Plastic Coppers ?
 

Surely you've spelt that wrong Dave;)

Re: Real Coppers vs Plastic Coppers ?
 

Quite possibly Jay, Quite possibly ! :D As to PCSO's & their usefulness here a rather robust & Anglo-Saxon perception :-

PCSO - ARRSEpedia

Its a military/ex-services site so you can imagine the humour levels ;)

Re: Real Coppers vs Plastic Coppers ?
 

Garbage, mate.

You talk about apprenticeships. In Germany, you still maintain an excellent apprenticeship system, whereas we abolished ours years ago. An 18 year old German kid wills, if he is good enough, be part of a 4, 5 or even 7 year scheme after which he will emerge has a fully qualified engineer and will be involved in manufacturing quality products for export. The equivalent British kid will be doing a joint honours degree in Wimmins, Ethnic & Leisure studies after which, rather than be a Captain of Industry will be knocking out quarter pounders down the local happy Macs.

The same goes for the current standard police training course. It’s 25/6 weeks of how to fill in forms, how to deal with gays & ethnics, domestic violence ,human rights legislation and a few weeks on basic policing. That is the equivalent of the crackpot degree.

Real policing is learnt over the next two years as a probationary police officer – and that is the apprenticeship. It makes far more sense to get rid of half a year’s college jinks and train these guys on the job from the start.

If you want to talk about the real problems facing British cops today, then you need to look elsewhere. This is the plethora of impeding legislation preventing them from doing the job they signed up for, the closure of local stations, the mass of paperwork, 24hour drinking and cheap availability of alcohol, immigrant crime...I could go on, but my tea’s ready.

Re: Real Coppers vs Plastic Coppers ?
 

[quote=DaveinGermany;848724]I used to use WOFT on many occasions when addressing one of my former bosses, he didn't have a clue what I was on about:rolleyes:

Re: Real Coppers vs Plastic Coppers ?
 

That I can agree with, like the military you sign up for X years service so those investing in you get a return for their money. Whereas with this little beaut they are looking for volunteers so they're once again trying to get Policing on the cheap, but without the stigma of "Placebo Plods".

As you say better to invest from the off, decent wages, training & you'll get decent Coppers with a will to get the job done & who are prepared to commit to a life in uniform. As to all the other problems they've to contend with, well a decent government should be standing right behind their law enforcement elements & making their job easier as opposed to more difficult & taking away constrictions/red tape & let them do their job, nicking scumbags & scrotes !