DCO In Country Escorting

I joined G4S about two years ago as a Detainee Custody Officer (DCO). I didn’t need any qualifications for the job but my early working years in HR followed by eight years in the school kitchen to fit in with my family life have proved to be good ingredients for the opportunities that G4S offered me. I had reached a stage in my life where I wanted to find a new career that paid good money and was based locally. During my four week training course, I made some good friends and became close with many of the people I work along side today.

As a DCO, it helps to be an outgoing sort of person who likes getting out and about rather than being stuck behind a desk every day. The best people in this job have excellent communication skills, are willing to be flexible and most importantly be able to empathise with others.

I enjoy the travelling aspect of my job, driving all over the country and often meeting up with the colleagues that I did my training with. The secret to this job is all about talking to people. It’s about speaking to people normally and treating them with respect. We always work in a team and I really like working with different people as it makes the job all the more interesting. Every day is ifferent, no two situations are the same and everyone gets on so well.

My work varies from working in the airport to being out on the open road, but the common factor is looking after people. We’re trained to deal with difficult situations but I can honestly say that over the past couple of years I haven’t had any problems. In fact, everything generally goes very smoothly and we even have a few laughs along the way.

My role involves escorting detainees and their children from Immigration Removal Centres, ports and airports to any location which is specified by the UK Border Agency. It isn’t just about detaining people though. It’s about having a caring and open-minded approach and keeping focused in pressurised situations.

Some of the detainees we escort are under a great deal of stress and are often confused or scared, so the ability to understand and deal calmly with all kinds of people is essential. We always have to be observant and aware as well as patient when talking to detainees too. But the most important thing is to be non-judgmental and treat everyone as you would like to be treated yourself.