Hannah Sydney

I’m a Detective Inspector, currently working within Learning & Development, a role that was meant to be temporary but I’ve been there nearly 4 years…

I celebrated 20 years service in February 2026, all of which has been with CoLP. I was the last cohort ever to attend Ashford and march at the passout parade!!

I’ve had a really interesting career to date.  I was lucky to get an opportunity to become a SOCO early on in my career. I worked my way up to become a Crime Scene Manager and my time in forensics inspired me to become a detective. As a TDC I joined CID and worked in the burglary team which was hard work but a lot of fun with a great team. From there I joined PPU which was where I found my calling and a huge amount of job satisfaction dealing with some of the most horrible crimes and helping victims rebuild their lives. I spent time as a DS and the ADI in PPU, before a brief time as the ADI of CID. 

Alongside my day job I am Bx Welfare, which means supporting big events, protests etc and ensuring my colleagues are well looked after (I have been called the tea and biscuit inspector!!)

Throughout my career I’ve acted as a welfare officer for staff and officers and this led me to work closely with the Federation. I saw the work they did to support officers and that really motivated me to become a Fed Rep.  I think it’s really important for colleagues to be supported by work place reps as we are impacted by many of the same things as our members, we hear grumbles and can do something about it. I think work place reps put a friendly face to the Federation and people hopefully feel more confident to ask for advice if it’s from someone they might see in the canteen or corridor. 

I’ve been lucky to start working on conduct cases, which was an area that really interested me, the welfare element of conduct investigations is something I’m keen to develop as a Rep. Another area I’d like to develop is reminding members that the Federation aren’t just for officers who are in trouble, they support colleagues who are victims of crime, being bullied, struggling with mental health issues etc. Welfare will also be a strong theme in everything I do. 

An interesting fact about me is that I’ve got a houseplant addiction, so much so that my desk is also covered with them! I also enjoy gardening with varying degree of success and I’m a member of the CoLP gardening club!!