Life in the Control Room: Lindsey Hernon
Lindsey Hernon works as a contact management operator in the Force Control Room. This involves answering 101 and 999 calls from members of the public as well as working alongside Controllers and Officers.
She uses her own life experiences to help others and make a difference. Here’s her story.
"I currently work in the Force Control Room as a contact management operator and have been working in this role for the past 18 months.
I applied after going through a very difficult period in my life and tired of the job I was working where I had very little job satisfaction.
With my changing outlook on life, I decided to make a positive career change after wanting to be able to use my own life experiences to help others. I applied for different sectors and decided to take this position and I feel great pride in wearing the uniform.
In my role, I am responsible for answering 999 and 101 calls from members of the public, neighbouring forces, and other emergency service agencies, working alongside command and control operators and officers to gain information relevant to incidents that have happened or currently in progress.
The Control Room makes me feel like I’m helping society and I can honestly say that some people in the world are safer due to the job that I do. No two days are the same and at times we can have to deal with some very stressful situations.
People call us when they are in their darkest moments. To be able to help them and help to keep our officers safe in sometimes dangerous situations and make their jobs easier gives massive job satisfaction.
I love the team I work with it sounds like a cliché, but we really are like a family supporting each other. Our bosses genuinely care about us and our wellbeing.
It is an exciting and a great environment to work in. It’s not for everyone but if you are up for a challenge and want to make a difference it really is worth it."