Criminology work experience at New Mole House

by Chloe Kou
This past week, I spent my Year 10 work experience opportunity at New Mole House, discovering a variety of different divisions and sections within the Royal Gibraltar Police in the company of some other students from Prior Park School. The visit included Drug Squad, Operations and Control, and CID (Criminal Investigation Department).

The first couple of days at New Mole House focused on an overview of the system and organisation of the Police force. We were given a thorough tour of the building, in which we visited the custody suite, office spaces, and interview rooms, along with a detailed explanation of each section we observed. Then, we moved on to the control room, where we witnessed calls being received by the Command and Dispatch (CAD) officers. After this, some of us got to experience the media division, where we were able to edit and shorten articles about the RGP, as well as coming up with ideas for photos that were also to be put on to the internet.

The latter days of our work experience included much more hands-on activities, such as fingerprint identification with the CID, and traffic control at the traffic compound. We even got to travel inside of a police van, whilst appreciating the functions of the equipment inside it. Some other equipment that we tried out were handcuffs, fingerprint machines, rams, and batons. During this, we were additionally able to watch the Passing Out Parade that was held for new officers to mark the end of their Training School, which was incredible to attend.

Overall, this five-day experience was one of the most memorable weeks of my life, and I believe the other students who got to visit the New Mole House share my views. I am eternally grateful for this opportunity to really experience in-depth the coordination of Gibraltar Police behind the scenes and would like to thank everyone at New Mole House who made this life-shaping week possible for us.

Chloe Kou is a student at Prior Park School and wrote this article as part of her work experience with the Royal Gibraltar Police.