PC Ollie Sleber

“In this role, I don’t think you realise just how unexpected things can be.” 

PC Sleber has been working as a response officer for five years. Based at Skegness, he used to work at a chocolate factory before joining Lincolnshire Police as a police constable.  

“I always found policing interesting, but I didn’t always want to join. My dad has retired from policing, and he wanted different things for me career-wise but when he realised that I wanted to join the force of my own free will, he was really supportive, and he was my sounding board.   

“In this role, I don’t think you realise just how unexpected things can be. Some incidents I leave thinking “I can’t believe this is my job”, and other times I think, it’s 2 o’clock in the morning and I’m herding sheep off the road – what am I doing? 

“Variety-wise, there’s no other job like it. You can do placements and there aren’t many jobs out there where you can try the job before you commit to it. I was able to do a brief stint in the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) to see what it’s like in that role and came back on response because it’s where I feel most comfortable.   

“If you’re thinking you can do the job, I’d say just be well informed. Make sure it’s what you want to do. If you know anyone that’s in the job, speak to them about their experiences, both good and bad. There’s also a lot of material out there on the force website and videos so you can do your research.  

“If I was to describe my role right now in three words, I’d say fun. I enjoy what I do. Challenging, because it can get that way at times, and there’s an unpredictability to it, so definitely unpredictable!”