A job like no other: Giles reflects on 30 years in policing

8 January 2021

Giles Dean says police officers are in a unique position to make a difference to people’s lives as he prepares for retirement after almost 30 years in uniform.

Giles, who chairs the West Midlands Police Federation Health and Safety Committee and today attends his last Branch Board meeting, was speaking as he looked back over a career which began in 1991 when John Major was Prime Minister and (Everything I Do) I Do It For You was number one in the charts.

“This job is like no other,” he said, “The highs are very high, the lows can be very low and on any given day you don’t know what will be in store for you.

“We have unique and privileged insights into people’s lives when they’re at their most vulnerable or exposed. By talking and understanding, we can learn so much about the human condition and use our experiences to help others in the future.

“Given all of the changes that have happened, and all of the moaning and complaining that I have done over the past 30 years would I do it all again?

“In a heartbeat, yes."

Jon Nott, chair of West Midlands Police Federation, has wished Giles a long and happy retirement.

“I would like to thank Giles for his work as an officer and the way in which he served his communities but I would also like to put on record my thanks for all his efforts in supporting and helping members,” says Jon, “I wish him all the best in his retirement.”

Giles has happy memories of his career and his early days on response, explaining: “Catching the ‘bad guys’ is, and always has been, the fun bit and my first nine years on response were probably still the most chaotic, scary and exciting times of my career. I look back on those days and the team with a great deal of affection.

“I’m very grateful to be coming out of the other end relatively unscathed. Apart from the usual cuts, grazes and bruises, the worst injury I received was a couple of fractured ribs.

“I’ve seen the job damage the physical and mental health of some colleagues over the years and have supported many of these people as a Fed rep.

“It has also damaged a lot of relationships and there’s no doubt that shift work and over-time can very be difficult for some partners to cope with, so many thanks to my wife Lisa for being so understanding.”

Giles said that one of the key achievements of his Federation work was helping to draft a motion from the West Midlands Joint Branch Board, which was delivered in a speech by the then branch chair Tom Cuddeford, to the 2014 national conference that saw all 36 recommendations of the Normington report accepted, marking a pivotal point in the Federation’s history.

“This included the direct election of the chair,” he said, “The scrapping of the rank boards and greater accountability and transparency for the Police Federation of England and Wales.”

But, closer to home, Giles has also put the health and safety of his colleagues at the heart of all that he does. He explained: “I meticulously obtained data on the true level of spitting offences against officers which was used to bolster the Federation’s case for the provision of spit guards.

“Never has the prevention of spitting been more important to protect officers and their families than it is at the moment.

“I chair the Federation’s health and safety committee and have been proud of the work the committee has done throughout the pandemic in visiting stations to check the locations have remained Covid secure, and in supporting colleagues with queries and concerns.

“I must give credit to the Force for being ahead of the curve, acting decisively at the very start and continuing to provide support and guidance to keep staff safe.

“Where there have been issues it has generally been down to individual complacency or the guidelines not being followed.”

Giles has always been based in Sandwell, but has performed a number of roles for West Midlands Police, from response constable, liaison officer and beat officer to custody sergeant, intelligence sergeant and neighbourhood sergeant.

“West Midlands Police was a very different place when I started,” he said, “The Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 had just about become fully embedded, much to the chagrin of some older officers who probably looked a lot like I do today.

“Front offices had cutting-edge whizzbang technology such as fax machines and telex machines. “The equivalent of an email was a typed WG401 that was passed around teams and diligently signed by each officer to acknowledge receipt then passed back to be filed. “Smoking in stations was still the norm and the CID offices in particular were a constant hazy fug.

“Local intelligence officers protectively curated banks of index cards with information on local offenders that these days we would find via computers and more recently through our hand-held devices.

“We were also trusted with cookers and bars in police stations – although it would be a few more years before we would be trusted with email.

“But although the environment has changed the basic principles of what it is to be a police officer have not changed one bit. The oath that the new recruits take at their attestation is still pretty much the same as I took 30 years ago.”

Giles encourages officers to revisit their oath throughout their career.

“If you ever have doubt as to what you’re doing or why you’re doing it, consider the oath and the Peelian principles of policing as your benchmark and you won’t go far wrong,” he said, “Policing by consent and preventing crime and disorder strips what we do down to the basics.”

Giles admitted that policing has not been without its challenges, and that not everything had changed for the better.

“The demise of the omnicompetent police officer has been an unfortunate side effect of austerity,” he said.

“The horrific cuts in police numbers and training provision have meant it’s been necessary to implement a production line-style division of labour to try to gain cost effective efficiencies in working practices.

“The advantages this may have gained in the short-term are being offset in certain areas of business by the disadvantages of specialisation which includes lower worker motivation, higher employee turn-over, over-reliance on interdependence and monotony.

“Despite the increases in officer numbers, I do not expect that the structures will be changing any time soon. West Midlands Police will need strong employee development plans to prevent these outcomes.”

He added: “The pause on recruitment for five years has had a massive impact upon the demographics of the Force. In three years’ time it’s estimated a third of the Force will be under three years in service.

“There is a big gap in the establishment where we should have had some experience. There are also a lack of willing experienced tutors to cope with the numbers coming through leading to 3:1 student to tutor ratios. “We have student officers coming straight out of their probation and being conscripted to become reluctant tutors.

“These officers should still be honing their craft and learning the job not having additional tutoring responsibilities that mean they could pass on naïve mistakes and bad practices to the next generation.

“A good tutor has always been massively influential at this critical point in officers’ careers. To have this diluted in terms of both experience and tutor student ratios is a very concerning business risk.”

Giles doesn’t have any firm plans for what he will do after his retirement.

“Given the choice, I would love to do something more creative,” he said, “Something I don’t have to wear a uniform for and, most importantly, I enjoy.

“As the job market is flooded with job seekers, if I can’t find anything that fits the bill I am toying with an idea to set up a business with my son who leaves school this year.

“Apart from that, I have plenty of hobbies and interests that can keep me occupied.”