It’s not often the top brass single out an officer for praise on social media for a doing a job few would thank them for.

But that’s exactly what Thames Valley’s Assistant Chief Constable Tim de Meyer did to mark the retirement of PC Julie Susel.

He shared: “Decades of service in Bracknell & Wokingham. Sadly soon to retire. Her engagement with our Traveller communities demonstrates the value of sticking with a role and building relationships. A fantastic career. We will miss you Julie.”

A tough job in a force that shouldered the death of PC Andrew Harper. And the career also includes two other deaths in the same team.

But, it turns out liaison work is one part of a fascinating career that began as a Special and includes 10 commendations. And she’s proud to have stayed on the frontline rather than climbing the career ladder.

PC Susel joined the force in August 1994, following three years in the Special Constabulary, working out of Reading and progressing to the role of Section Officer.

It was the analogue era: “I would go on foot patrol with my police issue handbag, skirt, small linked handcuffs and a six inch truncheon in my handbag. I could have hit them with my handbag, I suppose. We didn’t have CAPTA, we didn’t have Taser.”

There basically wasn’t much kit at all: “No PPE and a radio which was not personal issue and had to have a small aerial screwed into it at the start of a shift.  Quite often the radio would drop out, meaning no communication. It left you relying on your interpersonal skills – communication being the number one tool in that all important invisible police tool kit.

“It would very much be me on my own, at the Red Lion where a fight had broken out and the radio would drop just as you went inside. But I’d deal with it.”

Career development was done differently: “I was quite good at typing so would often be deployed to the duty of jailer, as we would need someone to type up the charges on the old fashioned typewriter.  Everything needed four carbons, [sheets that were slotted between blank paper in the typewriter to make copies] so I didn’t dare make a mistake. Compared to now it was a different world.”

Even the custody suite harked back to another era, with hilarious consequences.

Tea duty 

“Back then, the jailer would make the tea and coffee for the prisoners.  Obviously in paper cups.  One day, very new to the service, the Custody Sergeant told me to do the rounds, tea and coffee to all the prisoners in Bracknell police station and a welfare check.  I walked into the small kitchen, adjacent to the cell block and found a tea trolley and a rather lovely china tea set,” she says. 

“Of course I made a large pot of tea and walked around the cell block, giving out the best china cups and saucers, offering one lump or two. 

"As you can imagine, the rather bemused clientele were very grateful - even getting one of the Sergeant’s digestive biscuits… Needless to say, when I glided into the custody suite with my tea trolley – well, let’s say I never did that again.”

From there she progressed to become an Area Training Officer out of the newly launched Probationer Training Unit -the first in the force to be set up in Reading in 2000.

In 2004, she decided to apply for a position as Neighbourhood Specialist Officer, supervising a team of newly recruited PCSOs. 

The GRT connection 

And it was then that she first started to develop a strong working relationship with the significant Gypsy, Romany, Traveller (GRT) community in the area. 

The big breakthrough came in 2008 when she was placed with the Major Crime Unit investigating a GRT shooting. She enabled the unit to engage with the community, gathering vital evidence and successfully convicting a male of attempted murder. 

She was then asked to do a family liaison role for members of the GRT community and dealt with a series of major incidents.

“There was a suicide by hanging of an 18-year-old. The family though believed it was murder so I stepped in. I worked with the Met to help arrange the funeral,” she says.

Other cases included a fatal caravan fire involving a 28 year old male where she supporting the family throughout the investigation to the coroner’s court and helping to arrange another funeral.

There was also a double fatality of two young traveller boys who Julie knew well where she was requested to be the FLO from Suffolk Constabulary, supporting the family at the trial and sentencing in Ipswich. Another case involved the rape of a young girl with learning difficulties by two male Travellers.

She says: “It was an unusual role to have but it worked because I was able to open the channel of communication. They trusted me, which was fantastic. It was often working with families where the offender was among them.

“I’ve had a call from someone saying ‘I’m wanted, the police have been round for me but I was hiding. I want you to bring me in’. I’ve dealt with shootings and threats to life within the GRT community," she says.

"I can walk onto a Traveller site and be welcomed with a cup of tea. There are other sites in the country where I’m known. If I drop a few names, they say ‘we’ve heard of you.’”

There’s a concern too: “It worries me that we’re going to lose that now that I’m going.”

What have those experiences taught her?

“They are an extremely hard to reach group. There’s good and bad in everyone; there are good and bad police officers. The majority – and I can say this – have probably committed crimes. But it doesn’t make them ‘bad’ people.

“It’s still quite a closed community. The children are brought up not to talk to police officers. The women won’t talk out: there’s domestic violence within the community," she says.

The 'outside' world has some of the responsibility too:

"There is also still a lot of prejudice – both with the public and the police. It’s something we’ve got to work on. They are subject to racism. But it is getting better,” PC Susel says.

They haven’t been her only community: she worked extensively with Reading university including the death of a student.

In 2010, she became the Neighbourhood Specialist Officer for the Earley Neighbourhood – still with the GRT duty - and was awarded the TVP Berkshire Neighbourhood Officer of the year in 2012.

Training for the Pubwatch scheme and supporting families at Child Protection conferences has also been part of her career.

Darkness and light 

There have been some dark times too - not least the killing of PC Andrew Harper and the deaths of two other colleagues on duty who worked at the same station.

She admits it was tough: “It wasn’t on my area. They didn’t live far, but they weren’t my Travellers.”

His death had been preceded by PC Gareth Browning in 2018 and PC James ‘Dixie’ Dixon in 2017.

She recalls 2018: “We were all on duty. To lose one of our own is hard. I just thought, this can’t happen to one station. I didn’t think I’d get over it. We’ve lost too many.”

She adds: “I just want to leave knowing that l’ve left my colleagues in a safe place.”

The hard work hasn’t gone unrecognised: she was again awarded Neighbourhood Officer of the Year for Berkshire in 2019, the first person in the Force to win this award on two occasions.

She has also been awarded 10 commendations throughout her service including one for saving a life, and another for the investigation of a child sex offender who was convicted and given a custodial sentence. The PC has finished her career working within the Bracknell and Wokingham LPA in the role of Neighbourhood Officer.

Just a few days before retiring she had the unenviable job of tell a 24-year-old women with two babies that her 28-year-old husband had been killed.

“I knew going there I was going to crush their world. She sobbed for a good half an hour,” she says.

But it’s part of a job that she clearly lives for – and is passionate about.

So what about the force? Who does she rate?

“ACC De Meyer. He is such a good role model for younger officers – and very approachable,” she says.

Who has the best tea on the force?

“The Area Commander’s secretary, Karen Collins, without a doubt. Good biscuits, too.”

And the best cop?

“The best copper, the best thief-taker and the best detective has to be PCC 2809 Susel, retired. Definitely. One hundred per cent.”

That’s her husband who she met on the job and worked out of the same station with. How does that work?

She says: “We became each other’s therapists. Home life helps too. I’d take comfort in the little things; knowing I’ve got to feed the kids and take them to football practice.

“There were mornings when I was dropping them off at the police station at 7am and he’d come off duty and take them to school. He understood.”

The school days are long over; so it’s about the future. The Uplift generation are starting on the beat, many for the first time. What advice does she have?

How can they deal with their first unexplained death – and the others that follow?

“Talk about it. Get it off your chest. There are people who will listen. You can go to occupational therapy,” she says.

“Remember: you represent the community in which you serve.  Today maybe just another day to you, to someone you deal with, it may be the worst day of their life, for various reasons. They could have just lost a loved-one. You don’t know fully what you’re dealing with.”

Low level tactics work 

Tactics matter too: “Go in at a low level because you can raise if you need to. That’s how I’ve always policed. I’ve gone into the biggest pub fights on my own. You can bring people down by talking to them.”

And the key to making community policing work: “Make strong partnerships; that’s the way we’ve got to go. We can’t do everything; we’ve got to work with our partner agencies.”

And finally, for the officers that will take over her work: “Look after yourself, look after each other, wear your uniform with pride and give your best to your victims.  Never forget why you joined and always serve with pride, dignity and respect.” 

The future involves a well-earned rest – but not for long.

“I know what it sounds like, but I’m looking forward to being a mum, a daughter, a sister and a wife for a bit. And then I’ll look for something. It will be part-time and something to do with members of the public,” she says. “I do still like the public, even after all this time.”

PC Susel signs off: “I feel so privileged to have had a career that I’ve absolutely loved. I’ve loved coming in every day.”