Lisa Smith
Growing up I flitted between wanting to be a teacher and wanting to be a police officer with helping people always being my aspiration (yes one of those annoying people who seem to be born with a vocation or two in my case!).
I settled on teaching and completed my teaching degree to be a primary school teacher. I taught for a few years and really enjoyed it before my personal circumstances took me to France. I lived in Paris for a year teaching English to businesses and relishing the many culinary delights on offer!
On returning to the UK I still had thoughts of becoming a police officer so I decided that I would give it a go. I became a police officer in 2009 and so far so good. I spent nine years on the streets responding to 999 calls before moving into investigating missing person cases. Both roles were equally rewarding but a year ago I was presented with the opportunity to combine my teaching skills with policing and I jumped at the chance.
As a Cyber Choices officer I attend schools and academies providing presentations on the laws around computer use, how to keep usage legal and signpost many developmental resources. The other part of my role involves working with young people referred to my unit by teachers, social workers and police officers. These young people have computer skills and often get recognised by managing to get into “hack” their school computer network. I initially make sure these young people understand what is illegal/legal computer use and the consequences of their actions. I can then develop their skills in legal ways through the resources and courses we have available. The courses can provide them with extra UCAS points or even university bursaries.
Being a Cyber Choices officer is a positive role that looks at developing a young person and preventing them from getting into illegal computer usage. The concept moves away from the traditional way that policing has been seen- to only focus upon the aspect of punishment- and looks to education, understanding and development.