W(h)ither the PCSO?: Police perceptions of the Police Community Support Officer's role, powers and future directions.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of the Police Community Support Officer (PCSO) in the UK. The development of the role is charted from its inception under the Police Reform Act 2002. The present lived experiences of PCSOs, their colleagues and middle to senior managers have been used to assess the likely future direction of the role and responsibilities of these “public auxiliaries”.Design/methodology/approach – Structured interviews and focus groups were conducted with 39 serving officers from three police forces. The corpus of data was analysed for ideal types identified in previous academic work, varying models or complete alternatives.Findings – It was found that the PCSO role can be viewed as a continuum from what is termed in this piece, a “Junior Enforcer” role with a remit to assist constables to a “Bridge Builder” or uniformed community development worker at the other extreme. The study found that there is a marked drift towards the role of “Junior Enforcer” but that par...