Who's who on your streets

A guide to the policing team in Kent

Police officers

Police officers hold a warrant that gives them powers to make arrests and act to enforce the law and maintain public order.

They need a range of skills and understanding to deal with the of issues affecting the diverse communities they serve.

Some officers specialise in particular types of crime investigation while others work in the community.

Our neighbourhood officers work with residents and organisations in defined areas, to identify and deal with local issues. They provide a visible presence, investigate crime and anti-social behaviour and provide a single point of contact for victims of crime.

Special Constables

Specials are volunteers who, once trained, have the same powers as our regular officers and work closely alongside them.

Specials give up their time for free to help regular police officers deal with crime and make Kent a safe place for everyone.

Kent is one of the few forces to use Specials in the role of parish or neighbourhood constables, working closely with communities to tackle local issues.

Specials have the same uniform as regular officers.

Find out more about the Kent Special Constabulary.

Police community support officers

Police community support officers, or PCSOs, are an identifiable local contact who work with their police officer colleagues to deal with community issues. They have some enforcement powers, for example they can issue fines for anti-social behaviour, and these powers were extended in 2011.

In their distinctive uniform they quickly become familiar faces in a community, working with residents to tackle and prevent local problems such as anti-social behaviour and environmental nuisance. Most wear the distinctive blue uniform, but rural PCSOs, like council rural wardens, wear green.

All are employed and trained by Kent Police, but may be funded with partner organisations such as the Home Office, councils, schools and housing associations.

More information on PCSOs

Wardens

Council and community wardens work with local police officers to help make communities safer.

Community wardens (including Kent County Council wardens and those employed by Medway Council and district councils) work across the county and provide a uniformed presence in an area they cover by foot.

They provide a point of contact to the public on a range of issues and their local knowledge enables them to give effective advice and form links with residents and organisations.

They can help with problems such as:

anti-social behaviour
fly-tipping
graffiti
bogus callers
potential hazards (ie street lights not working)
low level crime

Although they don't have any enforcement powers, their proactive approach enables them to address the underlying issues which may have caused the problem in the first place.