Force Control Room

"I'll laugh or cry at the end of each day, but I'll know I've made a difference."

Hendrik joined the force on the main switchboard in 2021, and moved to the call centre in 2022, where he takes emergency 999 and non-emergency 101 calls for assistance from the public.

It is his job to quickly assess the level of support required. He can deal with some incidents himself, but others will need to be referred to the dispatch team, who organise the required level of officer response.

“We get all sorts of calls. They could be about safeguarding issues for children, domestic abuse, burglary, robbery, thefts, threats. A lot of the time it’s about knowing when to refer them to other services or organisations such as the council or other partners.”

Our officers and staff live and work in the communities in which they serve too.

Our people behind the uniform all have stories too. Like our Force Incident Manager, Martina:

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Sarah is one of the Dispatchers sitting in our state-of-the-art Force Control Room. 

We caught up with her to hear all about her role, what it's really like, and how her previous experience in roles outside of policing helped her get to where she is today! 

Tell me about your role, and how long you've been with Humberside Police? 

I started as a Switchboard Operator five years ago, where I stayed for two and a half years. I then became a Contact Officer, and then for the last couple of years I have been a Dispatcher. 

What's the difference between those three roles? 

As a Switchboard Operator, you're responsible for taking non-emergency 101 calls and sending other calls where they need to go. This might be sending people through to specific officers, the dispatch or crime team.

Contact Officers take the non-emergency 101 calls, set up the logs and either refer to the dispatchers, or to the crime response team in cases where response officers are not required to attend a live scene or crime in progress. The crime response team would record the crime, raise reports and have longer to deal with cases. 

The Dispatchers are the ones who manage live, ongoing incidents and jobs, and make the decision to dispatch response units across our force area. 

When you started with the FCR five years ago, was this your first job in policing? 

It was yes. Before joining the police, I worked for a vehicle garage and recovery company in a customer service-based role. 

That's interesting. What kind of transferable skills did you bring with you?

I definitely think the skills I gained there have been fully transferable into my role as a Dispatcher. I gained good knowledge of the local area, as well as becoming a good listener, and of course being able to multi-task!

I had to deal with more than one incident at a time, as well as assess the risk of incoming and outgoing incidents, which is similar to what I do now taking 999 emergency calls and dispatching the appropriate response unit to the incident as quickly as possible. 

Coming from a customer service role has really helped build my confidence, especially when it comes to remaining calm under pressure when I often receive calls from distressed people.

Why did you change your career to join Humberside Police?

I changed my career into policing because I wanted a job that makes a difference, and to help people. 

What kind of support is in place for career progression, training and development? 

From my own experience, I have had support from my supervisor and other supervision when progressing through each of my roles.

When you move into the Contact Officer role, you're given a training course, and then spend time shadowing a tutor before taking calls yourself.

Becoming a Dispatcher means a 10-week on the job training course with a dedicated tutor before going solo. But even then, you still have plenty of support around you - both from a professional and welfare perspective too. 

There are also opportunities to spend time with other departments to help expand your knowledge and gain a better understanding of how they work, and what we can do to help each other.

Since starting, I have spent a day with the Roads Policing Team and Protecting Vulnerable People Unit which gave me a good insight into what their daily taskings and workload are.

Is it what you expected?

Yes and no. When you move to dispatch you have a general idea of what the role is but there is a lot more that goes into it when you get to this stage of your career.

Being a dispatcher can be very challenging mentally and a lot of the incidents you deal with can be quite distressing. You have your colleagues who go through the same thing as you and there is always someone to talk to.

Humberside Police also has the Occupational Health Department as well as the employee support program that can be accessed if you need any additional support such as counselling.

From personal experience I have found both to be helpful and was offered support quite quickly when I needed it. Humberside Police also have specially trained Trauma Risk Management assessors available to speak with and offer support if you have had to deal with a particularly difficult incident.

What do you love about it the most? 

The part of the job that I love the most is the variety of incidents that you deal with daily.

There are some incidents that you will come across regularly but there is always something different and the job is very fast paced. If we can make a difference to one person’s life every day, then I feel that’s a job well done.

I started with Humberside Police in November 2022 as a direct entry dispatcher, and it was my first job in policing. I had been at my previous job straight from leaving school in 2014 but it was time for a new challenge in a totally different career where I could financially secure my future.

I previously worked at the Hull FC Foundation (where I still volunteer today) as a sports coach in schools and the local community across Hull, East Riding and North Lincolnshire. It was a fantastic job which I strongly believe helped shape me into the person I am today. During my time there I worked with a wide range of people including children, adults, and people with additional needs. I think this has helped me become very adaptable and resilient as well as patient. I have a strong work ethic and I’m keen to help my colleagues where I can. I think my last job taught me the importance of working as a team, especially in stressful situations, something which has been really important in the FCR during busy periods!

It has been a huge learning curve over the last 18 months. Coming into the role with no policing background has been quite tough at times, learning what different policing terms and acronyms took some time, but thanks to all the good people around me, particularly my tutors Carol and Saz I managed to pick it all up eventually even if I do still go blank now and again! Over the last six months or so I feel much more confident in the job and feel as though I’ve made plenty of progress. I know there’s still some way to go in that respect but I’m looking forward to that challenge of one day reaching the same levels as our experienced dispatchers.

Being able to help people is something I’ve always enjoyed, so being able to do that daily is something I really enjoy about the job. I enjoy the fast paced and unpredictable nature of the job, one minute you can be having a chat with your colleges and the next you’re in the middle of a big job. it keeps the days interesting and again once that jobs over you get that sense of pride from helping someone or getting a positive outcome. I also enjoy helping people on shift whether that be helping my colleges with a task or helping some of the newer staff with different things!

The first emergency I took when I was without my tutor was a man who claimed he was on his way to murder someone over a disagreement. I remember panicking initially, and just thinking I hope we get there in time! Officers managed to get him just before he got to the address, so I remember feeling a huge sense of relief at that point.  

I wasn’t sure what to expect at first, but the different types and volume of jobs has certainly been an eye opener! Before I started, I never really thought of the work that goes into everything between the call coming in and the officers getting to someone's door. The number of different checks that are undertaken in the short amount of time that officers have to arrive is quite surprising. There are definitely misconceptions around what goes on in the job, I think most of my friends think we all sit in a call centre racing to answer the phone, so trying to explain what goes on in the job without seeing it can be quite difficult, but I think they’re starting to understand.

I think anyone who would enjoy every day being different and fast-paced would be good for the role. You definitely have to be able to adapt to different situations and concentrate for a long time but you don’t always need a policing background, as some might think. It's good to work with so many different people from different walks of life. I think if you can communicate effectively and are willing to learn then you’d be able to succeed as a dispatcher.

I’m thankful for all the help and support I’ve received from my colleges and supervisors so far. It’s not always been easy and has taken some time to adapt but I’m really grateful for my workmates getting me through the tough shifts and I’m looking forward to continuing to work with them for years to come.

They are the voice you hear when you call us.

They are the experts at obtaining information quickly and accurately.

They are the ones who get the response officers to the required location as quickly as possible.

All whilst simultaneously conducting checks, operating the radios, and keeping their eye on the next incoming incident.  

It takes a certain kind of person with a certain set of skills to do what our call handlers and dispatchers do, but what is it really like for them to be the first to hear the horror stories from members of their own community, people from all walks of life, in all different situations, in the most traumatic, upsetting and often horrendous moments of their lives?

As part of our knife crime campaign, we’re speaking to a myriad of people, all of whom have been affected in some way by knife crime.

One such person who knows what it’s like to be the first person to find out someone has been murdered is Lucy Moss from our Force Control Room.

She started as a Contact Officer four years ago but has recently moved over to Dispatch which means she knows all too well what it feels like to be the person on the other end of the line speaking to a stranger who’s having the worst day of their life. She said: “Having been in this role for four years, I would say I’m somewhat practiced in remaining calm when it comes to something like this. In this role, you have to be, and you quickly have to adapt and learn that the best way to serve members of the public and victims of crime is to remain composed whilst doing so.

“I have to be the one to get all the relevant information to our response officers on the ground and assist them in the best way possible to get to the caller as quickly as possible.

“Whilst it’s happening, you cannot help but put yourself in the caller’s shoes, so you end up feeling all the emotions they’re feeling, as they’re feeling it. I do have to put that aside though and remember that I am there because this person needs reassurance and needs to know they are not going through this alone.

“I’ve learnt to be strong and empathetic to keep them calm too, and it comes with a lot of practice.

“The training doesn’t ever really prepare us for calls like this. It’s so easy for panic to set in, and hundreds of questions rush through your mind when you’re first processing what the caller is saying to you. You must remain focused though. The person on the end of the phone is relying on you to get officers there as quickly as possible, so it’s not until you’re unwinding on your way home that you think about what has actually happened. It can, and it does affect us.

“I would say that we take calls regarding knives at least once a day. It might be information regarding someone in possession of a knife at home, or someone who has been seen in public where assistance is required imminently for the safety of our communities.

“I have taken hundreds of calls over the last four years, one of which was the call to say that 29-year-old Jack Howes had been stabbed by people he knew in the street in Grimsby. I was responsible for getting the officers closest to the scene there as swiftly as possible to try and save his life.

“Unfortunately, more often than not, it’s too late, and when we hear people are carrying knives for whatever reason, we know that it will end up with someone being killed or seriously injured. Whether that be the person carrying the knife, or who it is intended for. Either way, many lives are ruined and affected forever. So, if you’re thinking about carrying a knife for protection, safety, or intimidation, ask yourself what’s the point?”

Find out more about our What's the point? knife crime campaign.