At the moment I have responsibility for 14 PC's and 12 PCSO's on my area. I will leave you to guess which group are the hardest to manage!

I worked with a female PC (WPC for the olduns amongst us) for part of the night (the same one as the other night and she is good at her job I have to say!). We took a PCSO to a job some 3 miles away and went to our appointment, leaving him to deal with some crap job there.

En route, he started to tell me how proud he was for being the first PCSO in the force to issue a ticket for littering. I have never given a ticket in my life so I can't really take the piss too much but this takes the biscuit!

He saw a lady take the clear wrapper from a packet of fags and drop it on the floor as she walked past the Police Office in the shopping area where we have an office. He went out and confronted her but she denied it so he decided to give her a ticket. It doesn't end there. He didn't have a ticket book on him so he told her he would send it in the post. She said no because her husband thinks she has given up.

So he decides to wait until he sees her a week later when he is back, promptly catches up with her and hands her the £60.00 ticket!



Now I know she has kind of done wrong, (hands up who hasn't) but was it really necessary to go to these lengths for the sake a fag wrapper? This lady worked in the local pizza place in the centre and they have an arrangment with the Police to let them sit in there to have their meal break and they get reduced rates for pizza. Ok that is another subject and it has pros and cons but she probbaly spits on his pizza when he goes in - I would!

Why have the government created this monster that they pay a lot of money to each year. A top rate PCSO takes only £200 per month less than me and they have no powers or stress to worry about. I have been in for 25 years and a second year Sgt!