Three members of Basildon Neighbourhood Policing Team (NPT) are celebrating a combined 60 years of serving the community.

PC Simon Kirk, PCSO Rachel Cotton and PCSO Darren Weeks have been working for the people of Basildon since the mid-noughties and say the last twenty years have flown by in a district where no two days are the same.

Simon and Rachel have already been recognised with long service and good conduct medals to mark 20 years with the force, with Darren next up to receive his as he passes the 20-year mark this November.

The trio are familiar faces in Basildon town centre, and all said that talking to people who live and work locally and solving problems is the best part of the job.

“There are so many characters in the town. There’s never a dull day and every day is different,” said Simon. “I really enjoy speaking to people, and the town is unique as it’s the one place in the district that everyone from the surrounding areas travel in to. The bus and train stations are always busy, and you get to know the faces.

“When there are incidents and we’re asked what’s happened to those involved, I enjoy being able to tell people that the offenders are now in prison. The public are very supportive and we get lots of positive feedback.”

Rachel said being out in town on foot was essential for making those all-important community links and getting to know what’s really going on in the area:

“It’s really important to be visible which is why I love being out on foot patrol. You get to talk to people, find out what their issues are and see what we can do to help. People like seeing us, and unless they can see you, they don’t know you’re there.

“Over the years, Basildon has got busier. I would say we have more issues with youngsters than we once did and we’re now dealing with some of the kids of people who were causing us issues 20 years ago!”

“When we started, we were constantly dealing with shoplifters, up to half a dozen a day,” said Darren. “We do still deal with shoplifters of course but now a bigger part of our role is dealing with anti-social behaviour.”

Simon said that the impact of mobile phones is the biggest change on his role since he joined the force:

“Smartphones have changed everything. When I was younger, you would have friends from school or your road but now all the youngsters are in contact through social media, which sometime presents challenges.

“We’ve had incidents where we’ve had five kids messing around and then suddenly there are 30, and then 100 kids there as they’re all mapping their locations on Snapchat. They’re only being nosy and not causing any trouble but it’s simply not something you’d have to deal with 20 years ago.”

“When you attend an incident today, there is often someone there live streaming,” added Darren.

Crime is continuing to fall in the district – 1,229 fewer offences were reported on the last 12 months – and Basildon’s District Commander, Chief Inspector Paul Hogben, paid tribute to the huge contribution the trio have made to keeping the public safe:

“Simon, Rachel and Darren represent the very best of neighbourhood policing in Basildon. Their combined 60 years of service is a remarkable achievement and speaks volumes about their dedication to the community.

“They’ve built strong relationships with local people, responded to countless challenges, and remained a constant, reassuring presence in the town centre. Whether it’s tackling anti-social behaviour, supporting victims, or simply being a familiar face on patrol, they’ve made a lasting impact.”

This article originally appeared on essexpolicemedia.co.uk and was republished with permission.