Through the eyes of a Special Sergeant.

Interview taken from the following article –Through the eyes of a Special Sergeant | Humberside Police

My name is Jonathan Page, and I have been in the Special Constabulary for 18 years, having moved up the ranks to become a Special Sergeant.

I’m based at Driffield Police Station and sit within the specialist team of the Rural Task Force. When I first started, I also spent some time in Hull City Centre working alongside officers in the hustle and bustle of Hull’s vibrant night time economy. There’s a lot of opportunities to gain experiences in different areas, but for me, the aim was to go back to my roots and serve the rural areas within Humberside Police’s patch.

For as long as I can remember, I have been interested in both agriculture and policing, being fascinated by law whilst growing up in the countryside. I never thought for one second in my adult life that I’d be doing both…

I founded my own Agricultural Consultancy Company in 2024 after working for a popular Agronomy company for over ten years. I’m passionate about sustainable farming and providing advice to help farmers produce high quality food including cereals, oilseeds and vegetables, but I have also been passionate about policing and loved the idea of spending my time helping and protecting my community.

My original intention was to join as a Special Constable and use it as stepping stone into becoming a police officer as I knew it would be the best way for me to learn the role and get an insight into whether it was right for me before taking that next step. I was studying Agriculture at University at the time, alongside a part time job in retail, so I thought well why not? 

I soon realised that I didn’t want to choose between my two passions and pursue a career in Agronomy or a career in policing, so I decided to do both!

For me, there is nothing more satisfying than by day being able to work for farmers offering advice and guidance on how to make their business profitable, and then by night, helping protect their farms and reduce theft. I love engaging with the rural community, especially when it comes to crime prevention, and protecting the wildlife too.

As a Special Sergeant, I manage a small team of Special Constables in Driffield and Bridlington who sit on the Rural Task Force. Our day-to-day activities include supporting rural communities offering crime prevention advice and reducing theft from farms.

We have great relationships with the local farmers and regularly attend their farms to engage with them and help them mark farming equipment with something called Selecta DNA which is a property marker that contains unique DNA codes. These codes then allow police to identify property that has been stolen and link criminals to the crime.

We also install DataTAGs to farm machinery; an electronic transponder that is designed to be hidden on the property that is to be protected. These tiny transponders, invisible to the naked eye, possess a unique identification code that can be ‘read’ by a hand-held scanner and used by all police forces across the UK.

Our work doesn’t stop there! We also organised proactive events protecting national heritage sites from illegal metal detecting, otherwise known as nighthawking, and preventing illegal harecoursing.

We work solo, or with fellow Special Constables, but we also carry out operations alongside Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs), regular officers and officers of all ranks and specialisms across the force. Alongside the proactive problem-solving, we do also get to attend 999 emergency calls.

When you first join, you have to undertake three months of intense training that normally takes place on weeknights and weekends to fit around your day jobs. After that, every year we must complete officer safety refresher training which involves passing a physical bleep test, swotting up on different laws, human rights, PACE and more that we must adhere to and know inside out, whilst also maintaining a good level of first aid training.

It’s safe to say I take my role as a Special seriously, I’d probably call myself an “extreme special”, haha! And as such, I have undertaken further specialist training too meaning I am a Level 2 trained Public Support Unit (PSU) Officer; a specialist role enabling me to deal with a variety of public order situations outside the remit of the standard level of training you would get as a both volunteer police officer, and regular police officer.

I’m also authorised to carry a taser which, as a Special who works alone in rural areas with support easily sometimes more than 30 minutes away, having the necessary equipment to protect vulnerable people and the rural community is one of the main reasons why I opted to undergo extra rigorous training to hone these additional skills.

It’s completely up to each individual how far they want to take their role as a Special, and as long as you meet the minimum requirement of 16 hours per month, you’re good to go. 

If you’re anything like me though (and a lot of serving Specials too; we’re all pretty like-minded) you’ll very quickly find yourself drawn in and unable to stay away, wanting to increase your expertise more and more the longer you’re exposed to this unique, rewarding way of life!

I would say being a Special Constable is a lifestyle – it takes commitment, dedication, and drive, and it’s all about juggling that work-life-volunteer balance.

We’re always looking for people who possess strong interpersonal skills, the ability to communicate clearly, stay calm under pressure and resolve disputes sensitively. You should also be self-motivated, committed, and adaptable with a strong sense of integrity and desire to serve your community which, more often than not, you live and work in too!

From a personal perspective, policing has made me the man I am today. When I think about what I have personally gained from this role, my first answer is always what haven’t I?!

I’d like to think I’m an outgoing person, who’s good at communicating and engaging with people from all walks of life, as well as confident in making decisions that have my colleagues and communities at the heart.

Joining 18 years ago, I never would have thought I’d be where I am now. I’ve learnt that life takes you on a path of discovery and wonder, and sometimes takes you to places you never thought you could go. I have been very fortunate to land my dream job as an Agronomist and am lucky that I didn’t have to make any sacrifices to follow my second dream too. It’s the best of both worlds and the best thing I’ve ever done in my life.