Get to know your Fed reps: Toby Winterbone

30 March 2021

With a passion for helping his colleagues and hoping to change things for the better, Toby Winterbone is one of our newest workplace representatives but has been a member of the Federation since he joined the Force in 2007.

“In my career, I have witnessed too many colleagues suffer with PTSD and other job-related issues,” he says, “I have felt helpless and like I could do more to help. This has driven me to become a rep, so I am in a position to help colleagues and try to effect genuine change for the better.

“I would like to be someone who members can talk to and confide in. I have a genuine concern and interest in the welfare of my colleagues. In my role, I’m used to talking to officers of various ranks and, if needs be, challenging officers of a much higher rank. I believe I am fair and have a level head.”

During his time as an officer, Toby has found himself using the Federation several times, mostly due to complaints from members of the public.

“I think we all know that complaints are inevitable if you're out and about policing,” he explains, sharing that he has also had to seek support from the Fed for personal reasons too.

“I joined the Fed when I became an officer as I believe that in this line of work it is highly likely that, at some point in your career, you are going to greatly upset some people. In order to have the best protection, it made absolute sense to join the only thing that will be there for you in your time of need.

“Every time I have had interaction with the Federation, I have received assistance and genuine concern from them,” says Toby, who is in the Roads and Armed Policing Team (RAPT), as well as an operational firearms commander.

As a RAPT officer, Toby says that one of his key priorities as a Fed rep is the welfare of officers within that department. He explains that he hopes to change the ‘that’s what they signed up for’ attitude that people have towards armed and roads policing officers, who he believes often deal with the highest risk areas of policing.

“I wish to change that ethos, to be able to prevent more officers suffering after what they have witnessed,” he says, “I also have a genuine interest in Post-Incident Procedures and how these are conducted.”

Toby is trained in specialist method of entry tactics and has various other skills to assist in armed operations and regular policing duties.

“The planning, preparation and dedication that goes into an armed operation is often overlooked,” says Toby.

Toby admits that he had not been someone with a life-long desire to become an officer.

He explains: “Policing had never crossed my mind until I took the decision to leave university and pursue something more hands on. After that, it made perfect sense to me.”

He has always had a strong sense of “doing the right thing and an urge to help others”, he says, and never one to want to be sat behind a desk all day, Toby says policing started to tick more and more boxes for him.

“Couple that with being able to arrest bad people, it was the perfect choice for me,” he added.

His first posting was to the Ipswich Central SNT, where he says he learned his “bread and butter”.

“A foot chase through the town centre with a shoplifter was guaranteed to make you feel like you’d done a good day’s work,” says Toby, who later moved to Ipswich NRT, where he says the variety of incidents multiplied dramatically.

Having been first on the scene to murders and kidnaps, Toby reflects on his “varied and interesting career” to date.

“I have been instrumental in removing someone from an honour-based violence relationship and helping them to create their new life,” he recalls.

“I have been party to armed dawn raids and commanded them as well. I have also faced people armed with every weapon you could think of and in the vast majority of cases, detained them with minimal force.”