First Contact Enquiry Officer

This vacancy is open to applicants who are currently unemployed in Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire. Way2Work is a fully funded ESF project run by Futures and its partners with the aim of supporting unemployed people into sustainable employment.

About the Company

Nottinghamshire Police is the territorial police force responsible for policing the shire county of Nottinghamshire and the unitary authority of Nottingham in the East Midlands area of England. The area has a population of just over 1 million.

The force headquarters are at Arnold. As of April 2022, the force had 2,238 police officers, 1,465 police staff including PCSOs, around 163 special constables, 113 police support volunteers, 19 student placement volunteers and 131 police cadets.

The chief constable is Kate Meynell, appointed from nearby Derbyshire Constabulary in December 2022, who followed Craig Guildford, in-post since February 2017.

About the Role

Main Purpose of Role

To act as first point of contact for all visitors and callers both face to face, online and by telephone providing a quality service and positive image for Nottinghamshire Police.

Whether it is taking a report of a missing person dealing with found property enquiries or supporting someone in crisis you will play a vital role in helping keep our communities’ safe, identifying and protecting the most vulnerable and preventing harm.

You will not only deal with victims of crime but with offenders so your ability to remain impartial and deal with people with professionalism is paramount.

Working face to face with members of the public reporting crimes and incidents at our front counters is a demanding role where you need to be comfortable working under pressure, patient and able to problem-solve. You will be the sort of person who keeps calm and is able to talk to people in stressful or emotive states. Thinking quickly is imperative. As is multi-tasking. Responding to a person’s needs, asking the right questions, listening for vital details and recording information, all while monitoring two screens and being aware of the other people in the front counter area.

During the course of your day you will also answer non-emergency calls from people ringing 101, you will deal with calls with the same level of professionalism as you will with visitors, answering questions and queries and generating incidents for officers to respond to.

You’ll find yourself engaging with people of all ages and backgrounds, so you’ll need to be able to build rapport quickly, show empathy and always communicate clearly. Enquiries can range greatly, including some of the most difficult situations you can think of. You will need to find the balance between compassion and not becoming emotionally involved; having the resilience to deal with the rough and the smooth daily. However, you will always be supported. Our Enquiry Officers are an integral part of our frontline, supporting the divisions North and South of the county specialist departments including Public Protection, Firearms and Counterterrorism. You will work closely with your police officer and staff colleagues, making a real difference, together.

No two days are ever the same. You could find yourself:

• Obtaining and recording accurate information regarding a live or historic situation
• Seizing a firearms, knives or drugs
• Responding to several emergency situations simultaneously
• Acting as the main point of contact between the force and the public

About You

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE

• Previous experience and or training in dealing with internal and external customers and being first point of contact for an organisation.
• Previous experience of handling telephone calls concisely and tactfully.
• Previous experience and/or training in an administrative/clerical capacity.
• Previous experience and/or training in keyboard skills and using information technology systems.
• Ability to communicate at all levels internally and externally both verbally and written, i.e. officers, staff, colleagues and members of the public.
• Be able to use a variety of operational computer systems to record appropriate information accurately to published standards ie word processing and email, although a knowledge of the use of spreadsheet and database packages would be an advantage.
• Be able to identify the correct level of response to incidents being reported by members of the public including the ability to make accurate judgements as to which enquiries should be referred to operational officers immediately i.e. identification of potentially vulnerable callers.
• Ability to deal appropriately with persons who may be aggrieved, distressed or in need of assistance.
• Be able to work without continual supervision, using own initiative, within a disciplined service.
• Be able to work alone and as part of a team.

Benefits

• 24 days per year annual leave, rising to 32 days (after 10 years) depending on your length of service (annual leave based on 37 hours working week and 7.4-hour day
• Great learning experiences that will support future career opportunities
• A competitive benefits package including pension, flexible benefits, employee assistance programme for advice and counselling, access to discounts / savings / cash-back rewards ( Blue light card)
• Progressive approach to flexible working, enhanced maternity and paternity leave and potential for a career break (after two years’ service)
• Part-time working patterns, flexible working and job shares, are available after completion of the full-time training. Flexible working is available or as a job share on the full shift pattern.
• Opportunities to join various support networks, staff associations and sports clubs. Being an Enquiry Officer is certainly not your typical nine to five role. So while customer service experience is a bonus, it is not necessary as, from your first day with us, you will be supported through great training and by brilliant teammates.