Box Hill police get Scope training to help people with communication disabilities

A police station in Melbourne’s east is the first in Australia to have its whole team specially trained to work with people with communication difficulties. Find out what triggered the training.

Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton, Scope chief executive Jenny Fitzgerald, John, and Box Hill police station Senior Sergeant Ron Sinclair at the award ceremony.

In an Aussie-first Box Hill police have undergone two years of training to better work with people with communication disabilities.

The eastern suburbs crew has just been awarded a Communication Access Symbol by disability provider Scope Australia, with all 60 of the station’s members having undergone a training program on how to better relate to people with communication difficulties.

The training comes after a Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission report in 2014 highlighted the difficulties being with communication disabilities faced when dealing with law enforcement.

Box Hill Senior Sergeant Ron Sinclair. Picture: Steve Tanner

The nationally-recognised accreditation is already held by more than 100 Victorian departments and businesses, but Box Hill is the first police station in the country to get on board.

Box Hill Senior Sergeant Ronald Sinclair said his team realised the importance of the training after The Big Issue seller John came into the station to report a robbery in November 2017.

Sen-Sgt Sinclair said John was selling the magazine in the city when two kids stole the money from his tray, but officers had “a lot of difficulty” understanding what had happened.

“Eventually we worked through it, but it was a very, very difficult process,” Sen-Sgt Sinclair said.

“Because we simply didn’t have the skills to communicate with John properly.”

“We recognised our knowledge gap.”

Sen-Sgt Sinclair said one officer designed a tamper-proof box for John to keep his money in.

The training was facilitated through an NDIS grant.

“We have an important role to play in providing positive experiences to people with disability,” he said.

Scope general manager north division Denise West said Box Hill officers had been practising relating to people with communication difficulties, and had worked with Scope to development communication aid handbooks.

The books, which have been printed in four languages and contain pictures and guides, will be kept in the station to help officers and members of the public.

Sen-Sgt Sinclair said both the training and the books had helped officers general communication skills.

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“It has really opened up the members eyes and made them more aware and more empathetic.”

He said the training had encouraged police to be more patient, and had also helped them to better understand people using English as a second language.

“We hope this symbol offers comfort to everyone, knowing that they will receive fair and equal access to our services.”

He said he was extremely proud for Box Hill to be the first station to have the training, but expected many others to follow.

“I really think that this will spread exponentially across the organisation,” Sen-Sgt Sinclair said.

Geelong police station is also about to get its accreditation.