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So, I’m Tanya Theobald, I’m the enquiry desk supervisor for the county and I have six desks I’m responsible for. This year will be my 17th year in force, and I’ve done 11 years as an enquiry desk officer.
The main roles of both enquiry desk officer and supervisor are myriad. There is so much that we do. You could have somebody who’s lost their purse, or you could have a rape victim that comes in very distressed, wanting to speak to an officer.
So, we deal with immigration signers for the Home Office. And we also deal with car seizures that have been seized by officers for no insurance. Another massive part of what we do, which is really important, is sex offender registrations.
We tend to deal with a lot of things that possibly are not police based. But when people are struggling with something or they don’t know where to go, they automatically come to the police.
But my biggest personal achievement from an actual customer base, I had a gentleman come into Wellingborough, he divulged he’d taken his colostomy bag off, he’d taken a massive overdose of morphine-based medication with the intent to kill himself. He’d been diagnosed with terminal cancer. He was an ex-soldier, and he was very proud, he didn’t want to be seen as weak. We called an ambulance, obviously, and after about half an hour or so he was actually lying on the floor, leaking bodily fluids from where his colostomy bag should be and slowly fading. It was quite distressing but obviously he needed me more than I needed assistance. I asked if there was anyone he wanted contacting and he refused. Eventually the ambulance came, and he shouted out a number for me and it turned out it was for his mum. He came in to thank me and to say he’d got a place in a hospice for end-of-life care, and that felt really good, the fact that he didn’t die with nobody around him, and he was going to be looked after. I’m not ashamed to admit I went home and had a good old cry that night because it was really sad.
We’ve equally at Weston Favell has a gentleman walk down and say he’s got a bomb in the back of his backpack, so it’s not always the victims. We also get offenders that can be quite unpleasant but the bigger part of it that’s difficult is when you can’t help the customers. When it’s not a police matter, you can sympathise and even empathise with them but some people you just cannot do anything for because it’s outside of our remit or, you know, legally we can’t help and it always feels really difficult and a bit wrong to turn people away in their time of need and I hate turning anyone away, it just doesn’t sit right. But, you know, we are a police force, we can’t be everything to everyone unfortunately.
I will admit, when I joined, I was pretty naïve but I think from a good point of view it’s made me more open to the fact that things aren’t black and white, you can’t judge a book by its cover and people do have stories and some of those stories have taken a bad path and others have taken a good path, but ultimately, when they come to us, there’s a reason for it.
Meet Tanya Theobald, Enquiry Desk Supervisor, who has been with Northamptonshire Police for more than 16 years.
“My role involves looking after 16 staff who are based at the six police desks across the county. I’m responsible for their wellbeing and needs including training and support.
“Part of my role is ensuring that we have the right people working on the enquiry desks as they are the public face of Northamptonshire Police. I also work on the desks when needed, usually due to sickness or annual leave.
“My desks are responsible for dealing with whatever comes their way whether that is helping someone report a variety of crimes from shed breaks to more serious offences such as child abuse, rape or domestic violence.
“We are responsible for checking all the legal documents for vehicles that have been seized for no insurance and releasing them.
“Another aspect of our roles is to complete the sex offender register for people who have been convicted of sexual offences and are ordered by law to notify us of their details.
“Many of the roles we perform support other departments, such as removing more than 40,000 pieces of incorrect information on the Niche intelligence system which makes it more efficient, faster, and accurate.
“Other forces are having issues interacting with legacy data, but because my team worked hard to remove the errors, our Force doesn’t have those same issues.
“A huge amount of people who visit the desks are looking for general information or assistance. When neighbour nuisance, social media problems and civil issues happen, and people’s first instinct is to come to the police for help. Even when it is not a police issue, we need to help them and at least point them in the right direction where they can receive help.
“We deal with many instances of mental health issues or episodes. Distressed people come to the desks needing urgent help. Dementia often plays a part in this, and we need to have a special skillset to help do our best by all our customers, but these can be especially difficult.
“This role is wide ranging as we are the ‘jack of all trades’ who need to have the answers to all the questions and problems we are faced with.
“My office is based in Northampton, but I am an agile manager. I visit the staff to support them, complete 1-2-1s and deal with any issues or problems they may have. I cover some days on the desks and of course I must attend supervisory meetings with my line managers and other departmental colleagues, depending on the need.
“I am responsible for the recruitment of new staff and training them in the role until they are proficient and can be released to work on the desk.
“Every day is different dependent on the needs of the business and what challenges may have come up.
“I love working with the team to support them the best way I can. I like to think that they can approach me with any concerns, both work and personal and I will do my utmost to help them. I am passionate about highlighting the great role the enquiry desk officers do, as we are a small team that is often forgotten, especially given that the department is a public facing role.
“My staff have amazing longevity in their roles. Of the 17 of us, we have more than 250 years of combined service which is an amazing achievement. From a knowledge point of view, it means we have seen or dealt with most things and have the answers or know where we can get them from.
“When I reflect on my achievements, from a personal point of view, I would say having my twin daughters who are now adults, in excellent jobs and have in the past 18 months bought their own first homes. One is currently taking her exams to become a chartered accountant, the other is a junior psychologist for the NHS.
“From a work point of view, I have a wellbeing dog which volunteers in Force helping officers and staff who are struggling with their mental health, or have been present at a particularly bad incident, or may be experiencing anxiety or depression. The smile on people’s faces when the wellbeing dog turns up is worth its weight in gold.
“There is one experience in this role which really stands out. I had a gentleman come into a station who told us he had ripped off his colostomy bag and taken a large quantity of morphine as he wanted to die. He had been a soldier, suffered from PTSD and was diagnosed with terminal cancer.
“After much discussion with him, while one of the staff was on the phone to the ambulance, I eventually managed to get him to sit on the floor with me. He was leaking fluids from the hole where his bag should be, which to be frank, smelled horrific. I sat holding his hand and talked to him about his situation.
“He was slurring his words and his lucidity was fading fast due to the morphine. I tried to get contact details for relatives or loved ones, but he refused as he didn’t want them to know what he had done. Eventually as the ambulance gurney was wheeling him out, he recited a local telephone number to me for his mum, who I contacted.
“He came in a week later to thank me for the time and care I had shown him, and to let me know he was going straight to a hospice for end-of-life care. Sadly, I was on a rest day, so I never saw him again. As horrendous as it was, I was so thankful that I had been there for him in his time of need.
“The fact that we are a front-line department can be quite difficult. The staff face abuse, threats, and bad language daily and some have even been attacked. Even when a customer is shouting, swearing and being thoroughly unpleasant, we must keep our cool, ignore the attitude and de-escalate the situation to help the person, no matter what the problem is.
“When you are dealing with unhappy people, which is a large percentage of our clientele, it can be mentally exhausting. The other issue that can be difficult is hearing the sometimes-horrific information that a victim wishes to report to you.
“Often when they start to talk, it comes out in a torrent and to get an accurate account, you need to get it all down. To be an enquiry desk officer (EDO) means you need to have a strong level of patience, resilience, and mental strength to get through your shifts.
“One of the biggest challenges is trying to get the department recognised for the hard work and variety of tasks and responsibilities that they have. Many see the front counter as reception work however we are far more than that and see some wonderful people. We see a lot of horrendous crimes and reports from victims and that is mentally difficult. When you have a particularly difficult incident it stays with you, and you can’t always get it out of your mind. The fact that we take the first report, but then don’t see the follow up or how that person is helped can be difficult because you never know what happens to them.
“Before joining I assumed that there were whole buildings of police officers waiting for the call to rush out and deal with an incident. I had no idea how small the teams were and the huge area of county they needed to cover. I was shocked that eight or 10 people would be working per shift on a team and there were far more issues than staff.
“I also see people differently. I used to have a very positive opinion of everyone, but the role does make you a little sceptical and I don’t always trust people or their statements. I think the biggest thing is how I look around me for more dangers, hazards and risk assess my environment especially when I am in a new area. Before I would have just walked around without a thought, but the crimes we see make you suspicious and wary.
“I had been working in customer service for many years, but had risen as high as I could go in the company, I was in. I wanted to challenge myself and move into a role that could help more people so when I saw the EDO post advertised, I immediately applied for it, but I didn’t think I would be successful in getting the job. I worked as an EDO for 11 years before becoming a supervisor, which I have now done for five years. I must admit that there is far more to the role than originally advertised and this keeps me interested and passionate about all things front counter.
“My listening skills have certainly improved as I now listen to the things that aren’t being said. Taking on body language and outward signs mean I can ask the right questions to find out that hard to get information from the customer. I now use decision making models in my ordinary life to make difficult choices. My biggest skill is gaining my level 1 and 2 British Sign Language qualifications by taking part in the PLOD course several years ago.”
Inspector Kevin Wooldridge, Tanya’s supervisor said: “The importance of the front counter cannot be overstated but is sadly not often given the recognition it deserves as a frontline policing function. The staff face every challenge our police officers do but without the benefit of protective equipment and warranted powers, so it falls on their interpersonal skills to diffuse situations or deal with enquiries that come up.
“Tanya has been on the front counter for 16 years, initially as one of the core team then as their supervisor. She is dedicated to public service, going to great lengths to ensure we have an open front counter even if that means giving up her own day off. What is not widely known is Tanya has caring responsibilities for older relatives which are challenging but she always attends work with a smile and a positive attitude.
“I’ve known Tanya since she first started on the front counter when I was a PC, then as a sergeant and now as an inspector. She is as positive and helpful now as she was when I first met her, always willing to help and do that little bit extra to ensure the public receive an excellent level of service.
“There are too many jobs to mention that show what an asset Tanya is to the Force but her example of sitting with the gentlemen with PTSD is a great example of the lengths Tanya will go to for the benefit of others.”
To find out more about an Enquiry Desk role and to view all our current vacancies, please use the link below.