Designated Detention Officers (DDOs)

Lisa is a busy working mum, striking the balance between her shifts and being at home with her family. We asked Lisa how she does her juggling act, and how she’s managed to make working shifts work for her.

What’s a normal day like for you?

Well that depends…. Is it a working day or not? If it’s a working day, I start early being up and ready to leave by 5:30am, having sorted out the school bags and lunches for whenever the kids wake up.

Once I’m at work, I put my uniform on and am ready for the shift handover. From this point onwards, there’s no such thing as a normal day and instead you get yourself ready to expect the unexpected!

After work, you switch back into normality and I’m at home ready to bath the kids before they go to bed. And then you’re ready to start all over again!

How do you make your shift patterns work for you?

On working days I am out of the house for a long time, so that can be a bit full-on and routine is important to make sure everything gets done. But then on non-working days you tend to get four or five days off in a row, which allows for recovery time and time with my family. I can do the school run, take the kids to after school clubs, have a bit of me time during the day… it’s the best of both worlds really.

My managers are supportive of my needs to be a mother first, DDO second. We have a parental leave policy and my manager’s will grant short notice annual leave if possible when the children are unwell. The Met are a supportive employer, and this makes a real positive difference when trying to balance work and home life.

What did you do before joining Met Detention? Did your background help you?

I joined the Met in January 1995, and since then have undertaken a number of different roles – I joined as a traffic warden, have worked in a station office and in our control room.

I discovered at an early age that being behind a desk in an office is not for me, and working in Met Detention gives me the opportunity to do something different.

My background has seen me work with individuals in alcohol related incidents, and has given me an understanding of how rapidly they can escalate. People can be quite unpredictable when they’ve been drinking; having experience of dealing with people in this state has helped me, I need to show lots of patience and empathy when dealing with detainees who have been drinking.

What’s challenging about the role?

It’s really important not to judge detainees, but sometimes that is hard. I also find it hard not to get too emotionally involved, which becomes harder when detainees have been arrested for offences involving children or the elderly.

When you can personally associate with the situation in hand it can be tough, you are human after all. It’s important to remember that both the detainee and the victim need you to be an absolute professional, so your training does kick in.

And what’s the best bit?

Every day is different, so that keeps life interesting. It sounds a bit corny, but we do make a difference to peoples’ lives, and knowing that is hugely satisfying. We see people at their lowest point, and you can help, be that through listening or by arranging support and advice from outside agencies.

Mo has been a DDO for around six years, having previously been working as a Police Community Support Officer in Lambeth.

What’s a normal day like for you?

There’s no such thing! Every day is different, every day has new challenges, and that means no two days are the same. That’s exactly what I love about this job.

I like to get in early so I’m ready for my shift, getting myself logged in raring to go. We’ll have a briefing from the outgoing shift so we know what’s what for everybody in custody, and from there, anything goes!

How do you make your shift patterns work for you?

We operate a 12 hour shift pattern, and I work about 14 shifts a month. That means I have plenty of rest days to spend time with my family and friends, have a bit of me-time for leisure activities and time to get away for a few days. Not many jobs offer that before you consider taking annual leave!

How do the Met accommodate the needs of your faith?

They are a supportive employer. I’ve been able to book annual leave around important religious days, and most police stations have multi-faith rooms providing a prayer facility. My team are supportive, they understand what’s important to me.

What do you find hard?

Every day brings its own challenges, and sometimes the days can be hard. No shift is the same so you can never be quite sure what to expect, but we try to be prepared for anything.

We have structure to our shifts, rotas for duties, workloads being shared out amongst the team etc, so it’s not all crazy and being on your feet. I guess it’s like any job, you have hard days and those that are not so hard – I try to catch up on paperwork on those days!

Carole is 62 years old, and has previously had an extensive career in shipping (over 25 years!). She opted for a career change in 2012 and hasn’t looked back since. She tells us why…

What is a normal day like for you?

Hmm define normal? There’s no such thing as a typical day. I have a really early start (my alarm goes off at 4:30am!), but the pain of this is balanced by being guaranteed a seat on the train.

On arrival, my shift will start with the morning routine – ensuring the detainees are fed, giving out medication, and then some preparation time before the day which is particularly useful if you need to be in court that day.

Serco will arrive to collect the detainees, and then we go into a routine of clearing cells and completing admin paperwork. Throughout the day you’ll be continually interrupted by buzzers from the cells, telephone calls from solicitors or members of the public, coupled by your patrols to undertake cell checks.

So I lied, there is an element of routine, but you always need to be prepared for anything to happen, as ‘anything’ crops up quite regularly.

How do you find the shifts?

I love them. At first, they turned my life upside down and took a bit of getting used to – I’d worked nine to five for 25 years! However, once you get used to them, the time off you get through rest days for outweighs any disruption.

I get four or five days off at a time rather than a rushed two day weekend where everybody else is also trying to get all of their shopping done! I can shop at my leisure, go to the gym, schedule doctor appointments without it being a real pain and so on.

The bit I really love is being able to collect my grandchildren from school and help out in the school holidays without having to take annual leave. That for me is really great.

What’s the best bit?

The unpredictability and the fact that every day is different. It makes life interesting.

Feeling that I can make a difference, making a connection with a detainee and calming them down is very rewarding. Sometimes we even get a thank you, which is really hard for somebody to say when facing this type of experience.

Last but by no means least is the team spirit. It’s in abundance, and it’s what gets us through the day.

Does your background help you?

My previous role was in export customer services, and I do feel that this has really helped me albeit it wildly different. I have life experience on my side, and can remain calm and level headed under pressure, even if somebody is being angry or confrontational. My office skills are well utilised here, keeping accurate records is an important part of running a smooth custody suite.

What advice would you give to somebody considering applying for a position with Met Detention?

I would say just apply, just do it. The job is very physically active but that’s good, I feel much healthier than when I sat at a desk for eight hours a day! As somebody who is over 60, feeling like this can only be a good thing - I have much more stamina than most people I know.

Some of my friends thought I was mad when I said I was looking at switching careers, but it’s been a great thing for me. It took me out of my comfort zone after having worked in the same industry for 25 years.

This role has really given me an insight into people, and I’ve become much more open-minded and alert as a result. I would never have had this opportunity had I not made the change, so I’m thankful for that.

My real advice? Just apply!