The outstanding achievements of a force call taker have been recognised, as she is short listed for a national award.
Carmen Glover, 39, is believed to be the first blind person in any police force in England and Wales to take 999 calls.
She will now represent Nottinghamshire Police in the Outstanding Achievement category at the Call Centre Management (UK)'s awards ceremony, which will take place in Manchester on 12 May.
Carmen joined the force in 2009, and had to wait almost a year before she could take both non-priority and 999 calls. Call operators usually have eight weeks of training and six weeks tutoring before starting in the control room.
The force invested in 'Jaws', a specialist screen-reading software, which talks to Carmen through her headset, navigating her around the computer screen while the caller speaks to her in her other ear.
Operators dealing with 999 calls need to be logged in to a different system and use a touch screen, which meant Carmen had to use a simple piece of plastic with holes in it, to 'feel' the screen.
Louise Ogden, a Control Room Manager who nominated Carmen for the award, said: "Carmen is a top performer on our shift, and last month took 100 more calls than her neighbouring colleague, which is a phenomenal achievement.
"She is an inspiration and is proof of what you can achieve if you really want something.
"Carmen is one in a million. She never gives up and is keen for someone to invent a way for blind people to read maps, as she wants to become a dispatcher who controls the radio operations for police officers.
"Whether she wins or not, her achievements are fantastic. I am extremely proud of all she has done, and the force is lucky to have her."
Speaking of her nomination, Carmen said: "I was really surprised to hear that Louise had nominated me, and I am really proud to be representing the force. Hopefully I can bring back the award for Nottinghamshire Police."
Article courtesy of www.policeoracle.com and Nottinghamshire Police
1 comment:
Good for her!
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