A mounted police officer who has served for 50 years says he has no plans to retire yet, and his love of horses has kept him in the job.
Paul Brown retired from South Yorkshire Police (SYP) in 2015 but did not want to leave so returned the next day as a special constable.
“As long as SYP will have me, and I keep passing my fitness test and mounted ticket, I will stay,” he said. “I’ve stayed so long because of my love of horses, and we have an excellent team. You go to work not knowing what you’re going to do that day.”
Paul started as a cadet in 1973, and was posted to Sheffield and Rotherham Constabulary. At 19, he went to Pannal Ash Harrogate Training, after which he was posted to Rotherham as a constable, the year SYP was established. In 1975, he was sent to Barnsley, where he worked in traffic and CID, and in 1978 to Penistone. Three years later, after a “chance conversation” in the pub, Paul found himself on a suitability course to be a mounted officer.
“I took to it like a duck to water,” he said. “I took part in county shows, we had a show team as we had the time then to compete. We now have a saddle club that we do in our own time but still represent the force.
“I’ve been all over the world competing, South Africa in 1996 was my first overseas competition, I’ve been to Oman, Abu Dhabi, Australia, America and Qatar, winning numerous awards over the years. I’ve visited many mounted units across the world and helped set the LA and Florida mounted units up with public order gear.”
Paul was among the mounted officers sent to London to help police the 2012 Olympics, which Paul described as the pinnacle of his career.
During his time with the mounted unit, Paul, who was awarded the British Empire Medal in the 2016 New Year Honours List, met celebrities including the Spice Girls but was also a screen star himself, appearing in Billy Elliot and Peaky Blinders, as well as a bread advertisement.
“But they aren’t the only exciting propositions Paul had in his time as a PC,” an SYP spokesman said. “He once found himself in a cage with five tigers at a circus visiting Barnsley. They were recruiting tiger trainers and Paul was invited to have a go, which he did! They could smell the horses on him, so he made a swift exit after a scenes-of-crime photographer, who was there by chance, managed to snap him in action.”
Paul has also bought and rehomed retired police horses over the years.
“Horses can break down barriers, people want to talk to you and see the horses,” he said.
“They help build a bridge between the police and the community. I’ve always lived by ‘treat people like you want to be treated yourself’ and you can’t go wrong.”
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