Kole's Story
There's no one type of person who suits being a Prison Officer, but the one thing they all have in common is their commitment to doing the right thing, their ability to build a rapport with just about anybody, and their passion for doing this highly varied, challenging and rewarding job.
Kole
Prison Officer
“I trained as an Aircraft Engineer but after finishing my training decided I wanted to do something completely different. I found the idea of working in security in some form or other appealing and thought I’d give this a go – and ten years later I’m still here and I love it.
In all honesty I thought it was going to be very hard when I joined and thought I’d be tested to the max, and I certainly have been challenged, but it’s nothing like I thought it was going to be. Maybe in some ways you do get acclimatised, and obviously with experience the fear factor goes down, but, ultimately, you’re a professional trained to handle any situation that might occur so you do have the confidence to deal with anything that might happen and incidents are much rarer than people imagine.
I think you need to be a real team player to do this job. You have to work as a team and we all really support each other. If you’ve had a bad day there’s always someone who is willing to listen. When it comes to our relationships with the prisoners, there is a degree of friendliness and certainly lots of banter, but there has to be a line – you’re not here to be their friends. Having said that, the way we maintain a calm environment is by working with them on a psychological level. It’s a role that is much more closely related to people management than anything physical, although, of course, sometimes this does come into play.
Decency is really important here – common courtesies like please and thank you go a long way; it's about treating others as you expect to be treated. It’s important to try to be a role model, something many of the people in prison have never had. I always try to see the good in people and get people talking. It can take a lot of time, and, with some people, you’re never able to make a connection. But when you do, and you can see that something you’ve said or the way you’ve explained something has really gone in and made them think, it’s an amazing feeling. I don’t think there’s any greater reward than changing someone’s perceptions of what life in general, and their life in particular, could be – and seeing them willing to make the change.”
