2nd March 2015
On 23 February, thirteen Level 3 Public Services students took part in a training exercise in the Hydra Simulation Suite at Avon and Somerset Police H.Q.
This training suite is used by many organisations across the Public Services to test multi-agency partnerships, and to develop problem solving and decision-making skills. After a briefing about Gold, Silver and Bronze Command and the use of Police assets such as marked and unmarked Armed Response Units, the students were sent into syndicate rooms in teams of three. Over the next two hours they were responsible for managing a suspected terrorist incident.
Police H.Q.
information was passed to and from the syndicates via ‘live’ video link, phone calls and fax. The visit was a real success. Sophie Bell said, “This really helped our teamwork skills. The real life situation made us understand what it was like to work under pressure.” Jack Ambrose commented, “We learnt to make clear and rational decisions quickly and effectively.” Harry Lewis summed up the day by saying, “The exercise really relied on good communication in the group. We had to react to information and task different units, including the Police helicopter.”
