As a career detective all my service (except, of course for my initial 3 years as a PC), I would be against direct entry into the CID, wouldn’t I? To achieve success as a police officer, it is utterly essential for a PC to learn the basics – how to deal with people in difficult situations and treat them responsibly – and then, as an aid to CID, to learn how to work the streets, make arrests, carry out observations all leading up to being a detective constable – how to investigate crimes, make arrests from those investigations and give evidence. And Passmore thinks this can be done in 10 weeks? Well, well. When the wheel comes off, and the instant DC makes a howling (albeit inevitable) cock-up, what happens then? Will they be sent back to uniform – when they’ve never been in uniform to start with? Perhaps there’ll be a space for them in the PCC’s office – where Dreamland begins and never stops.

The PEQF does accommodate the direct entry Detective route through the DHEP (Degree holder entry route) and the Pre-join Professional Policing degree route. So it’s not the PEQF that prevents DE Detective entry but the forces recruiting. Once the recruiting forces adjust to Degree Holder routes they will find they will be getting some very good applicants to the Detective entry routes. It appears that this is a short sighted opinion and is thinking that all PEQF entry must be made through the PCDA and Uniform only entrants?

Spot on Squadman, and in relation to your last point failed DC could join the, no doubt team, supplying the tea and biscuits ibn the PCC's ever growing empire!

It’s a general dumbing down of the whole service, whether it’s recruitment, initial training was world class, focused on policing and delivered by police officers. Politicians had a problem and changed it to what they considered to be their own, better system. That’s worked out well. Promotion, open to anyone and everyone especially those not suited to lead but who can pass an exam, a dumbed down exam on a dumbed down syllabus. Black stones 2022 Traffic Promotion Manual is about one third the size of the same manual I studied from in the mid 90s. Is it also the case for the other promotion manuals. Direct entry, what a political scam. A direct entry inspector is not and never will be an operational officer. The same is true about direct entry Supts. No operational skills, no admin skills, no experience, what could possibly go wrong. Direct entry detectives, where are the skills sets to justify such a position, where is the experience, the understanding, the knowledge other than that found in a book. It’s a ridiculous notion, a political idea embraced by CoP, And every other police quango and management team. The lack of union representation and normal workplace rights prevents any pushback.

@retired brief therein lays the problem, CID seen as a promotion and the punishment if you cock up being demoted to uniform. Be interetsing to see in my force when someone from CID last went out and did their own arrest, but then I suppose that's a job for the woodentops under old thinking eh?