Anyone who feels that they have a busy life should consider the decision taken by Helena Fortunato in 2015.  This mum of four young boys who, at the time, were aged 10, 8, 6 and 3, had successfully studied for a Master of Science degree to support her work as an Occupational Therapist (OT) when, over a cup of coffee, she saw an advert inviting applications to join the RGP.  

‘I was bored and literally I didn’t really fancy going back to my work as an OT. So, one day, when I was scrolling through Facebook and I saw an advert for the RGP, I thought, “I’ll have a go. There’s no harm in me applying.”  So, I applied on the spur of the moment – and that was it.’ 

But isn’t it tough to bring up four young boys whilst working as a police officer?   ‘In fact, our shift system gives me either mornings or afternoons off and I get 4 days off after 6 days of work. My bosses are really good and if I desperately need a couple of hours off, they’ll try to accommodate me and allow me to switch with someone else.’ 

‘Initial training was pretty tough because then we were working 9 till 5 for six months and I had to revise for exams every week and, of course, the boys were four years younger then.   

‘At first the boys were very excited – especially when they saw me on patrol in town in uniform.  But now they know they can’t get away with much because all the other officers keep me up to date with everything they get up to!’ 

Since her Passing Out parade in June 2016, Helena has spent most of her time working as a member of a Response Team – an officer on the beat – but, after being promoted to Police Sergeant last year, her main role has been that of Custody Sergeant.      ‘As a newly-promoted Sergeant, I know it’s a job I need to do but, really, I’d rather be out on the streets with my colleagues. I feel slightly that I’m missing out because I’m not with the team.  As a Custody Sergeant, I’m there to look after any detained persons in New Mole House. I’m neutral to any investigation and the people who are brought in know that I have a duty of care towards them and 

I’m there to look after their welfare. But you soon get to know the ones who have a history and are likely to ‘kick off.’’  

Helena says that the best thing about being in the RGP is teamwork. ‘I love coming in and working with my team because we are all striving towards the same aim – to make where we live safer. I love the job. I love being in the front line and I love being in a team. I don’t want to be promoted to Inspector because I want to stay with the team and I enjoy being their mouthpiece. In my opinion, Sergeant is the best rank in the RGP.’ 

And just in case you still don’t think she is busy enough, Helena is also trained in Public Order and Crowd Control, she is a trained Disaster Victim Identification Sergeant and a Domestic Abuse Champion.  

When asked about ‘the worst thing about being an RGP officer,’ Helena struggled to find an answer. ‘I wouldn’t say there was a worst thing.  As a mum, I sometimes miss the odd school event or the odd birthday celebration but, that’s it, really.’ 

Some people might think that it isn’t easy to be a woman in the macho world of the police, but Helena disagrees.   

‘As a woman in the RGP, I feel I am taken seriously both by my colleagues and by the people I have to deal with in the Custody Suite.  I think that my life’s events have helped me to toughen up. All my own family are back in Wales so, with four young boys to look after, I have developed quite a thick skin. So if I get any ‘sass’ from anyone initially, they soon realise that it isn’t going to wash with me. As for my colleagues, well, I’ve had no issues. I consider myself to be a hard worker and a very positive officer and so, as I say, I’ve never had any issues with my colleagues. No-one said, “You only got promoted because you’re a woman.” I got it because they know I work hard. To do this job well you need to be a hard worker and you need the right mind-set and the right ethics. My male colleagues all appreciate that, male or female, we all do the same job. That’s why there are no issues.’ 

If anyone feels that they have a busy life, I suggest that they compare their workload to this super-organised, multi-hatted mum-of-four. It’s exhausting just thinking about her weekly schedule of roles and tasks and yet, it seems that she could hardly be any happier.