Popular Mansfield PCSO hands up his uniform after 36 years with Notts Police

A popular Mansfield PCSO is finally hanging up his uniform after spending more than 36 years with Nottinghamshire Police.
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Paul Park, a popular figure on his regular beat in the Eakring area, joined the force as a traffic warden back in 1985 after moving from Liverpool in the late 1970s.

It was while he was working as a bus conductor that his wife suggested he apply for the job – a challenging-but-important role for which he turned out to be a natural fit.

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However, as PCSO Park revealed, his Nottinghamshire Police career was very nearly over before it began.

Paul ParkPaul Park
Paul Park

He explained: “In those days traffic wardens were part of the police so off I went to the old Central Police Station in Nottingham for my interview… which ended after about ten minutes when I was told I had failed my eye test.

“I thought ‘well that’s that then’ but a week later I got a letter telling me they had made a mistake and assumed I was applying to become a police officer. It turned out I didn’t need the eye test as a traffic warden so my second interview went a lot better than the first."

PCSO Park, now aged 66, became a Police Community Support Officer in 2005 when traffic wardens became the responsibility of local councils.

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His new community policing role came with several new powers but fundamentally depended for its success on the same well-hone people skills, discretion and old-fashioned life-experience.

He added: “When I started in the role the idea of a PCSO was still fairly new so I really wasn’t sure what to expect. But ultimately it was actually quite similar to what I had done before.

“For me it has always been about helping people and trying to solve their problems – and to do that effectively I think you need to be a real people person.”

PCSO Park completed his last shift from Mansfield Police station on Thursday and now plans to spend more time travelling with his caravan and fishing.

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Inspector Nick Butler, district commander for Mansfield, said: “We will greatly miss his wisdom, his humour and his friendship and wish him all the very best of luck in the future.”

Anyone interested in joining the police is urged to visit the force careers page.

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