'Your colleagues are family’: Chief Officer hands baton to new generation after 31 years in policing

After more than 30 years as a detective, Assistant Chief Constable Kevin Baldwin shared his best advice with the newest officers joining Essex Police at Friday’s Passing Out Parade.

The class of 5/23, made up of 30 men and 23 women, took their oaths at a special ceremony led by ACC Baldwin, who joined policing in 1992.

Among the special guests at the ceremony were his family, including serving police office and ACC Baldwin’s son, PC Nick Baldwin.

ACC Baldwin started his career as a Police constable in the Met Police. Over 22 years in London he worked as a murder detective and led the first taskforce specifically targeting gangs.

In 2010, as a Detective Chief Inspector working in Newham, he responded to the attempted murder of Stephen Timms MP at a surgery where he was stabbed twice.

He remained in Newham and was part of the policing operation making the London 20212 Olympics safe, before coming to Essex Police as a Superintendent in 2016.

Since then he’s held several senior roles, finishing with his job as Assistant Chief Constable and leading the Essex Police team tackling crime, public protection and criminal justice.

ACC Baldwin said:

“In all of my roles I have seen the best and worst of humanity and I’ve seen the very best of British policing.
“Today, as I end my career and you being yours, let me share some thoughts with you that I hope stick with you throughout your policing career.
“Don’t become cynical. Never lose sight of the fact that your actions save lives, change lives and help rebuild lives.
“Don’t forget your colleagues are your family. You will see and experience things together that are tragic, unbelievable, bad but also at times funny and unique. Your colleagues will always be there with you throughout those experiences.
“Remember we enter victims’ lives at the very darkest and lowest moments. It is a privilege to serve them, support them and secure justice for them.
“Making that arrest, getting that great sentence and can telling the victim justice has been served – that is what the job is about.
“And finally, keep doing the right thing, it really is that simple.”

PC Nick Baldwin, an officer in Essex Police’s Operational Support Group, talked about how hard his dad has worked as an officer. He added:

“I've been a police officer for seven years, but my dad has been a detective for more than 30 years.
“There's a lot of differences in the work we do, and I try and take his knowledge and use it in my own way to make me better.
“His knowledge and being able to ask him any questions as a new officer in my early years was everything you could ask for.
“I try and bring the same passion and work ethic that I have seen him bring when I'm on duty. That’s something he has taught me and my sister throughout our professional careers.
“That drive to do more and be a better officer is a great inspiration, and something I will never let go of.
“People talk about the policing family. For my dad, Essex Police really is a family because his sister and his son are both in the force.”

PC Nick Baldwin also shared a memory of working alongside his dad, while tackling drug dealers in the south of the county:

“I remember in 2017, at the end of my tutorship as a probationary officer in Essex, dad was working as Superintendent in London.
“We were both on a drugs warrant and as we forced entry, he leapt forwards and was straight upstairs.
“He checked two rooms before hearing movement behind the door in the third room - he kicked the door clean off its hinges, kicking the door into the suspect, who he then arrested.
“Some people would've called him lucky, but I know that his hard work and dedication to his craft is unlike any other. It's this that I know he will take on to his next challenge, whatever it may be.”

Despite three decades keeping our communities safe, Nick said his dad was never a police officer at home:

“When I was younger and at home he was all about spending time with the family – he would come to my football training and take my sister to dance lessons.
“He was just our Dad when we were kids, we never saw the policing side of things and he was very good and keeping those two parts of his life separate.
“Joining the police was always an option for me from around 18 years of age. I started to make decisions on my future before finally following in his footsteps at the age of 21.
“He supported me 100% of the way."

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If you share our values and want to help people, keep people safe and catch criminals, then join us as a police officer, member of staff, special constable or volunteer.

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