Salford Police Apprenticeship alum becomes first to be promoted to Sergeant

Brad Gibson, who works at the West Didsbury police station, began the PCDA course in September 2021, working towards his life-long dream of becoming a police officer.

“It’s the only thing I’ve ever thought about doing,” Brad said, “I’ve just never had any other career in mind, probably since I was about four.

“People say, ‘I’ve always wanted to be in the police’ and then they end up in accounting or something!

“But I went all the way through – all through high school, sixth form, it was all I’d ever really envisioned doing.”

Brad’s cohort of PCDA’s were one of the very first to be taught at Salford, after the programme was introduced as a new entry route by the College of Policing.

“In fairness to Salford, they did a really good job bearing in mind that we were one of the very first cohorts to come through,” Brad said.

“We were kind of like the guinea pig police officers!

“I think they did a really good job in terms of managing that.”

After starting his policing career stationed in Bury, Brad faced issues with commuting from Warrington, and so moved to Manchester City Centre, before deciding to try for promotion and sit his Police Sergeants Exam.

Shortly after receiving his results and learning that he had passed, Brad was moved to South Manchester.

“I sat my Sergeants exam, passed, and then two days after getting my result I was told I was going down to South Manchester!

“We cover Chorlton, Wythenshawe, West Didsbury, over towards Sale and Trafford, and I’m a Sergeant now!”

Paul McCurry, Lecturer in Policing and Directorate Apprenticeship Lead at the University of Salford, said: "Bradley was a highly committed student throughout his apprenticeship, consistently demonstrating a genuine passion for policing and a strong commitment to learning.

“Across his time on the programme, he approached both academic and professional development with maturity and enthusiasm.

“He delivered a solid performance in his End Point Assessment and, importantly, always remained humble and open to feedback, using it constructively to improve his practice.

“Brad’s progression and recent promotion are a credit to his dedication, professionalism, and ongoing commitment to personal development within policing.”

When asked if he had any advice for current or prospective policing students, Brad said:

“It’s a job like no other. Every day is different.

“There are over 200 jobs in the police, there's jobs for police staff as well if being a police officer isn’t for you.

“I'd recommend it to anyone, just give it a go!”

You can find out more about studying Policing at Salford here.