Driving standards

Introduction

1. This guidance deals with the driving standards that are expected of Honorary Police Officers driving marked police vehicles. The States of Jersey Police Officers are required to undergo intensive driving training before they are permitted to drive a police vehicle. This guidance seeks to ensure that Honorary Police Officers are held to a similar standard of driving, appropriate to their roles and responsibilities. It aims to ensure that there is consistency across the Parishes as regards the driving standards expected of Officers and the training that they are required to undertake.

General

2. All Officers must ensure that they comply with the requirements of the Road Traffic (Jersey) Law 1956 (the “Law”) at all times. Although Article 21 of the Law creates an exemption for police officers responding to an incident, Honorary Police Officers are rarely expected to respond to incidents in a way that would require them to drive at a speed higher than the Island’s maximum speed limit, specified in Schedule 2 of the Law.

3. In the course of their duties, Officers may be required to stop vehicles, respond to incidents, and escort large vehicles, all of which require a higher level of skill than the ordinary road user. Accordingly, Officers should receive a higher level of training to the ordinary road user. Training can be provided by a trainer accredited by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) listed in Annex 1 of this guidance, in accordance with nationally approved driving standards for police officers.

4. Details of the training courses provided by each authorised provider are included at Annex 2 and Annex 3 of this guidance.

5. Officers have a duty to keep the public safe and it is imperative that they are able to drive safely and are aware of the limits of their responsibilities when it comes to driving police vehicles.

Mandatory Training

6. In order to ensure that all Officers wishing to drive a Parish police vehicle as part of their duties are capable of driving to a suitable standard, Officers will be required to undertake driving training before they can be authorised to drive Parish police vehicles on patrol.

7. If the intention is for an Officer to drive a Parish police vehicle on patrol, they must undertake Parts 1 and 2 of the training in Annex 2, or Phases 1 and 2 of the training in Annex 3 (the “Mandatory Training”).

8. New Officers, who have not previously served in the Honorary Police, will only be authorised to drive a Parish police vehicle if they have completed the Mandatory Training. New Officers should be enrolled on Part 1 or Phase 1 of the Mandatory Training within 3 months of their recruitment if they wish to drive police vehicles.

9. All current Officers should now have been enrolled onto Part 1 or Phase 1 of the Mandatory Training. If an Officer has not been enrolled on Part 1 or Phase 1 or fails Part 1 or Phase 1, then they will be suspended from driving Parish police vehicles until they have been so enrolled or have passed.

10. Officers who have not been enrolled on Part 1 or Phase 1 will not be prevented from driving police vehicles for tasks such as parking the vehicle, moving the vehicle, driving the vehicle to DVS, and filling the vehicle with petrol.

11. Officers may only progress to Part 2 or Phase 2 of the Mandatory Training if they have successfully completed Part 1 or Phase 1. Officers are encouraged to enrol on Part 2 or Phase 2 immediately after completing Part 1 or Phase 1.

Optional Training

12. Once Officers have completed Parts 1 and 2 or Phases 1 and 2, they will have the option of completing Parts 3 and 4 of the training in Annex 2 or Phase 3 of the training in Annex 3.

13. It is not necessary for Officers to have completed Part 3 before completing Part 4 of the training in Annex 2.

14. Part 3 and Phase 3 may not be appropriate for all Parishes and Officers and accordingly this is offered as optional training. However, Officers who have not completed Part 3 or Phase 3 of the training will not be authorised to respond to incidents using a Parish police vehicle.

15. Part 4 of the training in Annex 2 will not be appropriate for all Parishes and Officers and  is accordingly optional. However, Officers who have not completed Part 4 of the training in Annex 2 will not be authorised to escort large vehicles.

Completion of Training

16. All Officers who wish to drive police vehicles as part of their duties, should complete Part 1 or Phase 1 of the Mandatory Training.

17. Officers may be entitled to a discount on their car insurance after completion of the training and should contact their relevant provider for more information.

18. Once completed, it is recommended that Officers attend a ‘refresher’ course every five years.

Driving Parish Vehicles

19. All Parish police vehicles must be marked and identifiable. Honorary Police Officers may use a Parish police vehicle while on duty if they have complied with the requirements set out above. Consideration however should be given as to whether it is appropriate to use the vehicle when not on police business. Should Officers use the vehicle when not on police business, they must have regard to public perception in connection with use of the vehicle for non-police purposes and must be respectably dressed and conduct themselves in a manner befitting to their role at all times.

20. No Parish police vehicle shall be involved in any high-speed chase of suspected offenders. Honorary Police Officers are not trained in advanced driving and the first consideration must always be the safety of members of the public. In the event that such driving is required, assistance should be sought from the States of Jersey Police.

21. No Parish police vehicle should be used to respond to an incident or escort large vehicles unless the Officer driving the vehicle has completed Phase 3 or Part 3 or Part 4 of the training respectively.

Annex 1

Andy Bisson – BEST Providers

• All trainers are experts in their field, advanced drivers and authorised driver trainers

• Andy Bisson is an advanced driver and rider and an accredited driver and rider trainer with RoSPA qualifications in both

• Andy Bisson has a Diploma in Advanced Driving Instruction

• Andy Bisson has a City & Guilds certificate in teaching for adult education and assessing in adult education. All trainers/assessors either hold those qualifications or are currently in the final stages of the training and certification

• All trainers are ex-police driver trainers who hold blue light trainer qualifications

• Cyber essentials certified

• JOIC data compliant

Mark Birrell

• Fire Officer for 34 years

• Emergency Response Driver Trainer/Assessor since 2004

• Head of Driver Training for the Fire Service

• Qualified RoSPA instructor/assessor - gold standard award

• Qualified Approved Driving Instructor

• High speed driving qualification

 

Annex 2

Andy Bisson – BEST Providers

Part 1 - Driver training/Assessment

This is a two-hour one to one session in the police vehicle with Officer and trainer. It starts with an overview of basic vehicle checks and then moves onto an assessed drive with advice and limited training on the system of car control. The session focuses on driver attitudes and behaviour as well as general driving skills. The Officer is encouraged to use early observation skills allowing them to identify and anticipate hazards, allowing them to respond in a timely manner, minimising risk.

The session is designed to ensure that Officers driving police vehicles are competent to do so, however it must be noted that this is not advanced training. The trainer completes a written assessment of the drive and identifies areas of development for the Officer and at the end of the assessed period, they will say whether they feel that the Officer is safe and suitable to drive the police vehicle or not. A copy of this assessment is provided to the Parish for their records. Officers that are successful and deemed authorised by the trainer will receive an ‘Honorary Police Driver’ licence showing them as an authorised driver.

Part 2 - Safe stopping of vehicles

This is a three-hour session with two Officers and two trainers. It starts with a theory session and a PowerPoint presentation covering the knowledge and skills required and also the SoJP policy. The on-road element uses a trainer as the subject throughout so that all stops are controlled within the training session. The trainers demonstrate a safe stop and how to position the vehicle providing maximum safety for everyone. The Officers then rotate and carry out several stops each in various lifelike scenarios providing them with the knowledge and understanding and the tool kit for stopping the public utilising their vehicle safely with blues lights and klaxons. A written assessment with development areas is completed by the in-car trainer and provided to the Parish. Officers that are successful and deemed authorised by the trainer will have their ‘Honorary Police Driver’ licence updated showing them as also being authorised in this area.

Part 3 - Response driving

This is a three-hour session for two Officers and a trainer in a police vehicle. Officers must have successfully completed Part 1 and 2 to undertake this training. This course also starts with a theory session utilising PowerPoint covering the training elements required and the dangers involved. There is also an on-road training element to provide Officers with the knowledge and understanding to drive a police vehicle with emergency equipment to clear traffic and to enable Officers to respond to an incident in a timely and safe manner. This course is delivered within the legal parameters and does not allow or authorise Officers to breach any road traffic laws. A written assessment is completed along with development areas and provided to the Parish. Officers that are successful and deemed authorised by the trainer will have their ‘Honorary Police Driver’ licence updated showing them as also being authorised in this area.

Part 4 - Escort training

This is three hours for two Officers and two trainers. Officers must have successfully completed Part 1 and 2 to undertake this training. This course commences with a theory element utilising PowerPoint. There is also an on-road training element to provide Officers with the knowledge and understanding of how to plan a route for an escort and to conduct a safe escort of a vehicle such as oversized or dangerous load with minimal impact to other road users ensuring maximum public safety. The training session is conducted utilising a trainer with an oversized load and the Officers demonstrate their knowledge and skills with an in-car trainer carrying out the escort. A written assessment is completed and provided to the Parish. Officers that are successful and deemed authorised by the trainer will have their ‘Honorary Police Driver’ licence updated showing them as also being authorised in this area.

Annex 3

Mark Birrell

Phase 1

One hour one to one assessment of the Officer’s basic driving skills and correction of any bad habits. Officers will also be given tips on what to look for which will enhance their standard capabilities to help them improve their driving.

Before Officers go out on the road there is a licence and eyesight check.

Phase 2

This is two hour a theory input session that generally lasts two hours for up to six people at a time. The Officers will be taken through several response PowerPoints along with some footage of how to drive safely and how not to and the consequences of when it goes wrong. The PowerPoints will also cover safe stopping of vehicles. Mark Birrell can also explain escort duty during this session if requested.

Either at the start or the end of this session there is a short written test.

Phase 3

This is a practical day from 10:00 to 16:00 (6 hours) where three Officers are taken on the road in one of their marked patrol cars. The session covers vehicle checks, cockpit drills and reinforces the responsibilities and the pressures faced in being a response driver.

After vehicle checks, Officers are taken onto the road for a 20 to 30 minute drive to settle their nerves then moving onto several coached response drives utilising both visual and audible devices.

The day finishes with Officers doing a response drive without any input from Mark Birrell unless required. If they pass, Mark Birrell will advise the Parish training officer to say he is happy for them to become a response driver.

 

Issued: 9 March 2023

Reviewed: 30 June 2025