Meet the new PC apprentices from Bognor Regis making our community safer

A former care home manager from Bognor Regis, who joined the police force hoping to help vulnerable people, was just minutes into her new role when she came to the rescue of an elderly woman.
PC Kodie Skinner (left) with PC Beth TowersPC Kodie Skinner (left) with PC Beth Towers
PC Kodie Skinner (left) with PC Beth Towers

PC apprentice Kodie Skinner was on the streets in her uniform for the first time when she responded to reports of an elderly female found confused and lost in Bognor by a member of the public.

Her swift and compassionate response resulted in the woman returning home ‘safe and well’ – and prompted her son to write Kodie a letter of thanks.

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Kodie said: “The elderly lady was agitated and unable to speak when we arrived on scene, so I calmed and reassured her, and managed to elicit her first name.

PC Kodie SkinnerPC Kodie Skinner
PC Kodie Skinner

“She seemed cold so I coaxed her into sitting in the police car where she would be warmer.

“She didn’t know where she lived or match any missing person reports, so, knowing the local area, I liaised with a local dementia hub and GP surgeries to identify her and her next of kin from her first name.

“It turned out she was 90 and lived in a care home thirty minutes’ walk away.”

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She added: “This outcome meant a lot to me as my main desire in joining up was to protect the most vulnerable.

PC Beth TowersPC Beth Towers
PC Beth Towers

“I had experience with working with vulnerable people with mental health challenges of all ages, so I hoped to use this – but I had no idea it would be on my very first incident!

“I was really touched that the lady’s son wrote to the force.

“He said that as police officers are so often criticised, it’s good to give praise where it is due.”

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Kodie, who has a one-year-old son, started working in care homes in Bognor after completing her A-Levels, going on to take over management of failing care homes and turn them around.

She is now one of Sussex Police’s 24 new apprentices working in West Sussex, who joined the force’s new specialist police officer Coaching Units in June.

Kodie said: “I had always wanted to become a police officer but I didn’t think I would ever get in but I decided to go for it as I needed a change and wanted to do something for myself – so with a lot of hard work and perseverance I got through.

“I’m pleased that I am doing a three year degree apprenticeship as I am finding it is well regarded amongst my new colleagues on division.”

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She and her colleagues will work alongside their coaches until they gain independent patrol status, after which they will join response teams throughout West Sussex while they continue to study toward their degree.

Kodie is keen to get stuck into working on response in Bognor when she gains independent status.

“Working in your home town, if you make a positive difference, it’s your own community and your own children you are making safer,” she said.

“I’m looking forward to building relationships and mutual respect with communities – particular those that can be harder to bridge, like the street communities, as they are the one who inform us of crime.”

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Another PC apprentice from Bognor recently experienced his first targeted operation which involved seizing more than 40 illegal weapons as part of a wider operation tackling serious violence and knife crime.

PC Zac Stout joined enforcement officers in the search of a property in the Chichester area in August where he uncovered the items – part of a haul of more than 75 illegal weapons and imitation firearms seized at the address.

A woman was arrested on suspicion of importing prohibited weapons and has been released under investigation.

The former tree surgeon, who had his own business in Bognor for seven years, said: “It felt really good to have taken those weapons off the street and to have helped make West Sussex a safer place.

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“It was great working alongside experienced officers from Prevention, Response and Investigations and seeing how they interacted with the public and performed their duties.

“On a day-to-day basis, being paired with such experienced, knowledgeable coaches, is a great way to learn the job.”

The father-of-one also used to work as a retained firefighter but said policing was what he really wanted to do.

“I joined up for the variety. I feel like this job is going to keep me on my toes for the rest of my life, and the prospects of future avenues to go into are quite exciting,” he said.

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Zac hopes to go into public order policing before going on to join the firearms unit.

Meanwhile PC apprentice Beth Towers – a former PCSO in the Littlehampton area – is planning on joining the Safeguarding Investigations Unit in the future, where she will work to protect the most vulnerable adults and children.

She said: “What appeals about working in safeguarding investigations is that you get to work with people longer term and see them through the process.”

The most significant incident she has attended so far involved responding to reports of a baby being physically abused in the street.

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She took him into police protection and got him the medical care he needed, before it was decided that he would go into foster care.

Beth said: “It was a very difficult decision as taking a baby away from their parent is obviously a last resort, but in this case I believe it was the right one and meant that we were able to protect the baby from harm.”

West Sussex Superintendent Miles Ockwell said he was ‘really impressed’ with the impact the police constable degree apprentices had made since joining the division in June.

“As well as making arrests, seizing illegal weapons, protecting the vulnerable and tackling issues affecting the day-to-day lives of local residents in West Sussex, the recruits have provided valuable support for our prevention, investigations, roads policing and tactical enforcement teams,” he said.

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“The difference these new officers are making is down to both their hard work and that of the divisional coaching teams who are training them.

“The coaching units, which opened across the force in February, are allowing us to effectively deliver the police constable degree apprenticeship, equipping them with the professional requirements of 21st Century policing.

“A further 25 apprentices will join the West Sussex coaching units this month, having completed their initial training at HQ.

“I am heartened by the great start these recruits have made, and am confident they will continue making a positive difference to the people of West Sussex.”

Anyone interested in a career in policing can find out more by visiting the Sussex Police careers page.