Lancashire Constabulary
Founded in 1839, Lancashire Constabulary covers an area of 1,189 square miles. The county has a population of nearly 1.5 million with a rich diversity of communities, all with specific policing needs.
The Constabulary is split into three divisions, West, South and East and our Headquarters is based in Hutton, Preston with our Dogs and Mounted section nearby. You can find out more about their divisions in the ‘Your Area’ section of their website.
INCLUSION STATEMENT
Lancashire Constabulary’s position as 4th in The Inclusive Top 50 UK Employers Index reflects the high standard to which they operate. As well as addressing areas of improvement, Lancashire Constabulary have developed and delivered high impact initiatives to actively implement solutions.
CEO STATEMENT
Deputy Chief Constable of Lancashire Constabulary, Terry Woods commented “I am absolutely delighted that our strong focus on diversity and inclusion has been so highly commended by the Inclusive Top 50 Companies Award judges. Rising from last year’s position of 12th to 4th place, reflects our commitment and hard work across the organisation to encompassing equality and inclusion. Inclusion is absolutely vital to us as we strive to keep our communities safe and feeling safe – we can only be effective in that if our workforce is truly reflective of the communities we serve. We have more work to do in this area and are committed to delivering an integrated inclusive people-centred approach to everyone who chooses to work with us.
EMPLOYEE PERSPECTIVE
DI Hazra Patel
After college, Detective Inspector Hazra Patel worked as a sales executive for a stationery company and although she loved the people interaction, something vital was missing. “I really felt that I wasn’t making a difference to people’s lives which is really important to me,” she explained.
So she joined Lancashire Police in her early 20s and has never looked back: “Fast forward 17 years, I am now a Detective Inspector working to support new detectives to the team I have held a variety of roles within the force and making a difference and protecting people drives me to come to work every day. I think the best part about becoming a police officer is making a genuinely positive impact on people’s lives, I think you will be hard pushed to find another career that can truly say this. Hazra’s feeling of fulfilment extends to her home life too:
“My family are really proud of me and my career. Being a positive influence for my children is very important to me and setting a good example to them makes me feel very proud. Although there is quite a demanding shift pattern to the job, I actually have a great work-life balance.”
“If I could give one piece of advice to someone considering a career as a police officer, I would honestly say be open-minded. It is versatile, fun and you become part of a big family because of the experiences you share that will be challenging to anything else that you have done! I would say communication is at the heart of everything, so you really need to be a people person, and genuinely care about helping people, making and keeping them safe! The police is a career, and you’ll be hard pushed to find something that is as fulfilling.”
PCSO Kinga Wisniowska
Kinga Wisniowska joined Lancashire Constabulary in 2020 after working for a number of years in retail. Kinga had always dreamt of becoming a Police Officer and chose to apply for the role of Police Community Support Officer to begin her career, get a real understanding of policing and gain insight into the communities she could potentially serve as a Police Officer.
Kinga said “The role of a PCSO is so varied, the fundamentals are getting to know your area, building good rapport with the residents and communities and looking at ways you can help solve their problems. You plan your days by prioritising the different jobs and tasks you’re given; you must be able to use your own initiative and create your own work. I always love to keep busy and in this job you most certainly never get bored.”
“You come across new scenarios daily and have to figure out the best ways to deal with them, and you always have the support and back up from your colleagues. Even though this is a non-confrontational role and therefore our powers are limited, we’re always confident that if a situation escalates, we have the backup of the PCs,” she explained.
“I would recommend this role to anybody who loves engaging with the public, helping people, genuinely cares about the issues in our communities and believes they can make a difference. My parents and family couldn’t be prouder of me and the work that I do. I am also extremely proud to be a part of the Lancashire Police family.”
