Blackpool Superintendent Jackie Kingsman bids farewell after a 30-year police career

Jackie, who grew up in St Annes and attended Lytham St Annes High School, joined Lancashire Police in October 1990 and was first posted at South Shore’s Montague Street station.

She said: “It’s where I cut my teeth as an officer; learning the trade, task, and job of being a police officer. I spent five years at South Shore before I became a constable at Blackpool Central.

“It was all very much Blackpool-centric in terms of my work and where that work came from. It was also about passing on the skills I learned to other people.”

Jackie later moved into training, working at the force’s headquarters in Hutton, to the south west of Preston, teaching inexperienced officers. The role, which lasted three years, sparked her interest in people before she was promoted and moved back to Blackpool as a sergeant.

She soon moved up the ranks, spending time as chief inspector and tactical firearms commander. She became superintendent in 2016.

Jackie said: “I think it’s fair to say I will always regard West Division, and in particular Blackpool, as my home place of work. It’s in my work DNA, to be honest.”

She considers being made a superintendent her proudest moment in the force.

She said: “It was an absolute privilege and you can’t underestimate the influence of positivity you can have on the people around you – not just your team, but all your staff.”

Jackie said cuts to the force because of Government austerity merasures led to the toughest time in her career due to the impact on her colleagues.

She said: “Professionally it was incredibly challenging because the morale of the staff was really low. Because we had to find savings it made it really difficult to pull so many things in place, in particular around community policing.

“It was when I was an inspector that neighbourhood policing suffered years and years of austerity. There were opportunities that came out of that to do things more efficiently and to do things better but it was really hard, especially as a leader, to keep staff motivated and focused to try and help them remember why they joined the police force and make a difference to people’s lives.”

She also said Covid-19 has brought new challenges. She said: “Things were quite steady in terms of demands and calls for service, but you always knew or always wondered what was happening below the surface in terms of people needing our support and help.

“Because of the lockdown measures it has definitely been very challenging, because we’ve had to adopt and change the way we do things in terms of how we respond to the public.

“We’ve also had support processes in place around protecting our own staff and how we ensure they are protected to deal with health as well as manage and support the public.”

Around 12 years ago, when she was a temporary chief inspector and her career was on an upward trajectory, Jackie’s husband was diagnosed with cancer.

She said: “I stood down and went back to being an inspector. The force looked after me and my husband but sadly he died and it was a really difficult time in my life. I also lost my father and an uncle a few weeks after my husband died so it was a really tough time, but the organisation and my colleagues really looked after me. It’s what made me realise it’s more than just a job, it’s a family.”

Jackie lives in Ilkley, West Yorkshire, and despite a weekly 600-mile commute, she said it was never a chore.

She said: “It has been worth every mile even though at times it’s tiring and the weather was terrible. I’ve come across floods and roadworks, but it’s worth it because I’ve worked with a really great team.”

Jackie has looked forward to retiring but isn’t planning to put up her feet for too long.

She said: “I think I’m going to have a rest for a couple of months and my husband retires from West Yorkshire Police in about six months time, so the plan for the future when the world gets back on an even keel is to do some travelling.

“I’m also probably most likely going to find some voluntary work. I’m not sure exactly what yet, but it will definitely be with young people, perhaps coaching and mentoring those who’ve had a tough time in life.”

“I might also get my cello out from under the bed and learn how to play again.”