`Give us time` direct entry superintendents tell conference

Direct entrant superintendents have asked for time to make a difference to the service and appealed to be treated the same as other senior officers.

In an elective session at the Police Superintendents’ Association of England and Wales, superintendents on the controversial programme to bring people with different perspectives into the service told delegates that it is too early to show what a difference they will make.

Metropolitan Police Service Superintendent Liz Chapple said: “Have there been opportunities to bring different perspectives? No, not yet, unless we push that very hard ourselves, which we have been trying to do.”

She agreed this was a missed opportunity for the service.

North Yorkshire Police Superintendent Adam Thompson said all eight superintendents on the first cohort could only make a very small difference, which means it will take five years for those differences to have an accumulated effect.

He said his main role is to empower others to bring their ideas to the fore and 90 per cent of federated ranks recognise the same issues need to be addressed as direct entrants.

“Success to me is steering people to how they can implement their ideas,” Supt Thompson added.

The first cohort has completed two periods of training at the College of Policing, operated as constables for three months and have just completed a further three months learning sergeant and inspector roles.

Supt Chapple said it has been a triumph of breadth over depth of training so far.

They face a further eight months of training, including an Ospré type exam – a combination of the traditional sergeants and inspectors exams mixed with superintendent authorities – in November and will complete workplace assessments at each rank.

They will all then complete a business project and community project before taking on their superintending duties in full.

Delegates said they want to hear what changes direct entry superintendents are bringing before suggesting their forces adopt the programme with a superintendent from Cheshire questioning the length of time to prove the concept works.

City of London Police Superintendent Paul Clements said they must wait as currently just four forces have recruited under the scheme.

“Give us a break, we are just going through the Ospré training. And many things will be out of our control – how will chief officers and police and crime commissioners react to it? It is not all within our sphere of control. We have the energy to achieve significant things in our forces but give us time,” he explained.

He said he would not want Cheshire Constabulary to wait until it sees evidence it is working; it will take a critical mass of direct entry superintendents with broader geographic spread and forces should not wait for a full evaluation before joining the scheme.

All direct entrants at the session denied they joined for a short period to add another aspect to their CVs.

Supt Clements is a former consultant for KPMG and Accenture, having conducted a number of projects for police forces. His last role was a Bank of England manager and is married to a police constable. He said he joined the direct entry scheme to be able to make a more direct impact on people’s lives.

Supt Chapple said she expects to work for the police for the rest of her working life and does not believe any of the other direct entrants have any intention of using the programme as a stepping stone to other roles outside the service.

While serving as a MPS Special Constable, she developed her private sector career. She said the direct entry scheme was a perfect opportunity to use the skills she learnt outside the service and fulfil her desire to serve the public.

Direct entry superintendents face long careers with fewer opportunities to progress due to likely cuts in the number of chief officer posts over the next few years. Will they be happy to serve for 20 years in superintending ranks? Supt Chapple said she looks forward to using her skills in the right context, not necessarily by cli