Fed member shines light on rural crime in Nottinghamshire
21 June 2024
We spoke to Nottinghamshire Police’s Force lead for rural and wildlife crime, Clive Collings about the challenges, misconceptions and importance of policing in the countryside.
A police officer for almost 27 years, Clive Collings’ career as a cop went through its most significant change to date when he switched forces to Nottinghamshire Police in 2022.
He was part of the furniture at South Yorkshire Police, having joined at the age of 20, but started a new challenge as chief inspector of neighbourhood policing teams across Bassetlaw, Newark and Sherwood after a promotion two years ago.
Becoming acquainted with his new communities would not be a worry for him, as this fresh chapter also saw the start of a secondary role as the force’s lead officer for rural and wildlife crime – meaning that, if he wasn’t already, he was now certain to be covering every corner of the same towns and districts.
Clive, now 48, explained why he took on the job.
Rural policing
“With such a big change, I was going to have to adjust to things anyway, whatever I was doing – so it was a good opportunity to try something different. And it didn’t take me long to learn what the fundamental differences between urban and rural policing are," he said.
“Obviously, towns and cities have more people – so, more factors of threat, harm and risk, but also more police staff and more witnesses to crimes. Police forces are naturally more inclined to concentrate their efforts into urban areas, and that means in rural policing, every resource must be maximised.
“This, combined with the scale of rural areas, means dealing with issues in those communities is more challenging in some ways."
Nottinghamshire Police’s Force lead for rural and wildlife crime, Clive Collings.
Amid all the demands of modern policing, the idea of rural crime may present itself as an afterthought to some. Stretches of fields, valleys and woodland, where population density is dramatically reduced, could raise the question, 'why is a dedicated police team needed, and what exactly are they dealing with?'
Clive continued: “What I’ve also learnt is that there is a link between urban criminals and rural crime most people wouldn’t realise. For instance, after drugs, humans, and firearms, wildlife accounts for the fourth largest illegal trafficking operation in the UK.
“If avenues are closed for activity such as the first three, people are turning to these alternatives where the profile is lower, and sentences are much shorter, so it’s about rebalancing that policing instinct.”
Wildlife crime includes poaching, culling, and activity relating to CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora), the latter of which Clive revealed is becoming increasingly common through the illegal purchase and resale of exotic birds from the European continent.
As the World Wildlife Crime Report 2024 states, CITES forms a ‘crucial’ part of a global framework in combatting wildlife crime. On a local level, individual operations such as Nottinghamshire’s are becoming more sophisticated in order to align with and carry out such protocol in their respective areas.
“We have good relationships with all four of the forces who border us – South Yorkshire, Derbyshire, Leicestershire, and Lincolnshire,” he added. “I am also the chair of the regional wildlife crime forum, which ensures we are linked together, sharing intelligence and working collaboratively.”
Wildlife crime
This cross-county effort has been boosted and formalised in recent times with the introduction of a rural and wildlife crime strategy, written by Clive himself.
In addition to wildlife crime, the strategy focuses on five other key areas: agricultural crime, environmental crime, organised criminality in rural settings, rural isolation, and quality of life of residents.
He said: “There is so much more to rural crime than people are aware of. We have to deal with plant and livestock theft, countryside fly-tipping, and the storage of stolen vehicles in remote places.
“There are also social factors which can lead to crime such as domestic incidents that we need to consider.”
Aided by this level of detail and scrutiny, Nottinghamshire’s rural and wildlife crime team is responding to leads all over the county and making a difference.
Last year, officers secured a warrant to raid the address of a man who had committed horrific acts of cruelty against wildlife in Bassetlaw, following a complex investigation. Discovered at the address were numerous trophies, including fox tails and badger and deer skulls, coupled with mobile phone footage of dogs being set onto animals and brutally killing them.
He was subsequently arrested and convicted this March, pleading guilty to four counts of causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal and sentenced to 32 months in prison.
“I have never seen animal cruelty like it – he had essentially set up a homemade abattoir. It was absolutely barbaric, and it had received significant outrage on social media. The way we dealt with it should demonstrate to the public how serious we are about tackling rural crime,” Clive said.
Countryside
The chief inspector, whose police service will reach 27 years next month, added that for all the emphasis placed on stopping criminals, there are also victims to be remembered.
He added: “We also have officers who will reach out to residents, particularly farmers, with advice on how to protect themselves against crime. I’ve found that you have to be a better communicator in rural policing because you are dealing with some very isolated people who can feel forgotten about by the Police.
“That’s why our work is so important – we are giving a voice to people who can feel really vulnerable.”
For Clive, it is the building of trust with such individuals which plays into the sense of reward he feels as Force lead. Still in relative infancy within the role, he is intent on growing his impact across the Nottinghamshire countryside further.
“I have found it very fulfilling so far, and it’s been a real eye-opener. It’s easy to think rural crime means a quiet life for a police officer, but in reality, it’s a whole other world full of its own obstacles.
“At the same time, there is a relationship with the more prominent urban crimes, and it’s been interesting to discover how it fits into the wider criminal picture,” he ended.
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