Meet The Wiltshire Police Federation Reps – Connor Crespin

31 January 2022

Meet The Wiltshire Police Federation Reps – Connor Crespin

Q. Can you give us a brief summary of your career history and your current rank and role?
A. I'm currently a Sergeant working on response in Swindon, passing my promotion process in September 2020. I've been with Wiltshire for 4 years and prior to that I spent three and a half years working for British Transport Police as a neighbourhood and response PC.

Q. What made you want to be a Fed Rep?
A. I first stood to election for the Federation 2 years ago after being subject to two criminal interviews. The anguish and helplessness I felt inspired me to join as a Rep so that I could do my bit to try and help others not feel that way.

Q. Why do you think it’s important for members to be supported by fellow officers as their Reps?
A. The role of the Rep is essential. We act as a voice for those who aren't entirely confident speaking out, we have a deep understanding of the misconduct, UPP and UAP Regs and we offer advice on duty time on a daily basis. My background in Response, both at PC and Sgt level, has given me a really strong understanding of what's working and what still needs improving. In recent years the Fed have been seen as an organisation to bash over pensions and whilst I'm sure there's good reason for that, it glosses over the work that we do on a daily basis for members.

Q. Which areas in particular are you looking forward to focusing/do you focus on?
A. My primary focus as a Rep is on conduct. I'm passionate about ensuring that the process is fair, consistent and administered in line with the Police Regulations. My other area of focus is working arrangements - the other Wiltshire Police Federation council members will be sick of me by now but I've been campaigning for months now for changes to the CPT Response shift pattern.

Q. What should members do if they’re concerned about anything?
A. Members need to talk to us if there's an issue. We've got Reps across the county and across departments. Just tell us if you think something is wrong - you may not get the answer you like but we'll do our best to ensure that the advice you're given is accurate.

I'd urge line managers to approach the Fed for advice too. A lot of the UPP and UAP proceedings we're seeing at present aren't being administered correctly - this is affecting officers an enormous amount.