Special Constable Fiona Skinner

Meet Special Constable - Fiona Skinner

If being a Special Constable is something you are thinking about, at any stage of life or career, my advice would be do it. It is truly a privilege working within the community being a part of North Yorkshire Police as a Special Constable.

My passion for policing started at an early age when I grew up and went to school in South London in the 80’s/90’s. Although my Interaction with the police in that part of London was minimal, the desire to help people and really make a difference in people’s lives, was at the forefront of my career aspirations.

When it came time to choose where I was going to select for my work experience the choice was clear, I wrote to the Metropolitan Police to ask if they could offer me a position for two weeks.

To my delight, they gave me the opportunity to work in the Law Department in central London. It was a wonderful experience and absolutely cemented my desire to one day be an officer.

My career has been varied and mainly consisted of retail roles and customer service positions. With the birth of my eldest daughter in 2014, and not wanting to miss out on her formative years, I decided to create a childminding business with my husband.  We became full time childminders giving us the opportunity to look after our growing family as well as providing consistent and wrap around care for other working parents.

Eight years later, having been in the childcare industry for several years, my own children at school or left home having their own family, I found my desire to work within policing was still at the forefront of my mind. The opportunity to apply for Special Constable arouse and I took the plunge after some discussion with my family.

The core reason I applied for the position of Special Constable, is It offers the flexibility and work life balance to be able to spend my spare time doing something so rewarding. I was elated when I passed the application process and started my training. Although it was a big adjustment, everyone saw how much I was learning and enjoying the experience. My family were so supportive and proud of me, it was really a dream come true!

As of February 2024, after my attestation for Special Constable, I decided to wind down my childminding business. Wanting a change and as luck would have it, the position of Customer Service Officer (CSO) became available at my location station. I applied and was successful! This duality of roles between Special Constable and being a CSO, gives me the experience in another side of policing which work well together.

My decision-making skills have certainly been brought to the test, when going out on shifts as a Special. I have worked across a diverse set of teams from response, attending 999 calls, having to make split-second decisions, to working with neighbourhood policing attending planned events. I have also been lucky enough to work with Special Operations involving a passive drugs dog deployment, to help in the detection of illicit drugs. North Yorkshire Police has an array of events to get involved with the contribution from Specials is always so welcomed.

As part of my career so far as a Special Constable, I have been accepted as part of every team regardless of rank and found colleagues to be incredibly supportive and encouraging. Every day is truly a school day, however when you have amazing colleagues around you to help and guide you along it makes it all so much easier.