In their grey uniforms, Tri-Service Safety Officers (TSSOs) are the all-rounders of the emergency services. At the scene of an accident, you might see them diverting traffic (police), administering first aid (ambulance) or cutting people out of vehicles (fire). But how much do you know about this role, which started in Cornwall and is attracting keen interest from forces across the UK?
The Tri-Service Safety Officer (TSSO) programme is a collaboration between Devon and Cornwall Police (DCP), Cornwall Fire and Rescue Service (CFRS), South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SWASFT) and Cornwall Council’s Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB) Team.
It was launched in Hayle in 2014, to coincide with the creation of a new hub housing all three emergency services, and was initially designed to plug gaps and reduce 999 response times in rural areas. It has since been extended to larger towns like Camborne and Penzance, and celebrated its tenth anniversary in October, with five more officers bringing the total up to 14 currently serving Cornwall.
I joined TSSO Josh Harmon to get a taste of what a typical day’s work might include. The Mid-Cornwall district covers a huge area encompassing Truro, St Austell, Newquay and Helston; team leader Josh is based in Lostwithiel.
Josh worked in construction for 20 years, and trained as an on-call firefighter in his hometown of Newquay. “I loved it, and when I heard about the TSSO role, I was keen to apply,” he says. Four years on, he works 12-hour shifts, three days on/three days off.
Different locations have their own issues. Lostwithiel is “largely elderly”, and a lot of the work is preventative. That said, Josh gets a lot of road traffic collision (RTC) calls due to his position next to the busy A390 and easy access to the A30.
In contrast, urban areas are more likely to face higher crime levels, often triggered by financial difficulty and mental health issues, requiring a more reactive response. In the patch next door, St Dennis has a younger population and is more susceptible to ASB; and tourism honeypots like St Ives have massive seasonal variation to skew the workload.
I meet Josh at St Austell Community Fire and Ambulance Station. There are no ambulances present, and assuming they are out on jobs, Josh logs his availability. He always carries a “crash bag” containing a defibrillator, Entonox for pain relief, blast bandages, tourniquet, oxygen and other general first aid equipment, to administer care until paramedics are in attendance.
“Last night, I picked up a road traffic collision (RTC) on the A30 on my way home,” he explains. “Critical care was already there, so I acted in a police capacity instead – traffic management, road closures. As a TSSO, I can move between the three services as required.”
At Lostwithiel fire station, the police radio chirps away in the background; Josh is listening out for St Austell’s call sign, Golf Alpha. He picks up a call-out for sightings of a vehicle with links to his patch: “We’ll keep an eye out for that.” However, he’ll phone it in rather than pulling it over: “We don’t confront – TSSOs don’t carry tasers or handcuffs.”
A live log on a laptop screen covers everything from cardiac arrests to large objects rolling around the A30. A thunderclap outside signals the approach of Storm Eowyn, and a mini-tornado is wreaking havoc on the north coast. Josh’s colleague Phil is in Holywell Bay, where three static homes have been flipped over like pancakes. Josh expects the police radio to be red hot once the storm arrives proper, with reports of fallen trees and RTCs.
TSSO tasks vary. Josh and his colleague Lewis were the first officers on the scene of a murder, and a TSSO offered an early response to the land train accident at Tregoad Holiday Park near Looe. When a mental health sufferer threatened social workers, a TSSO was able to get an incident upgraded, meaning police and ambulance presence was on scene faster.
Social media is useful for leads, although it helps to separate truth from perception. Our first stop is at the Best Western Hotel on the A390; rumours have been circulating about the parent company using the hotel to house asylum seekers, and Josh is keen to find out how true this is. “As there have been protests elsewhere, it helps to be forewarned.” The manager assures us there are no plans to use the hotel in this way, and we move on.
Josh is keen to point out that TSSOs are not trying to replace officers in individual forces. “All services are working to capacity and doing their best - St Austell’s police and ambulance stations are among the biggest and busiest in Cornwall, due to its population and demographic,” he says.
“While the primary services have to step away and move onto the next job, they refer low-risk jobs to us for follow-up work when needed. For us, it isn’t about quantity of call-outs, but quality. It’s a huge bonus of the job.”
A case in point: Josh has had a referral to visit an elderly couple, following a referral from paramedics who were called to the property when both husband and wife fell over.
With his Cornwall Fire Service hat on, Josh checks all existing smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, fits an additional alarm and offers advice on keeping the house clear of trip and fire hazards. The stairs in the heritage property are extremely steep, so he enquires where the bathroom is, and whether the couple can reach it safely.
The householder is chatty; Josh listens patiently, occasionally guiding the conversation gently back to the information he needs. He can refer them to other services for help, with consent; however, the householder feels he and his wife are doing just fine for now, and Josh is reassured that their son recently moved in to care for his parents. In any case, the afternoon will be taken up by paperwork to be shared with ambulance, fire, police and adult social care, who will make their own decision on how to proceed.
A career highlight was helping an older lady move out of substandard accommodation. “The fire service attended because her fire alarm kept beeping, and reported back to me that this lady had no running water and had to use the public toilets in town,” he recalls.
“She had been living in a poor way for several years. The property was single-glazed so it was cold and noisy, and it was rife with mould and damp.”
As a result of Josh’s intervention, harnessing Cornwall Council and her MP, the tenant was moved into a heated flat and her former landlord was prosecuted. “I’ve attended life-saving RTCs, but this is the job that stands out to me – and all because the fire service had a point of contact, rather than just thinking ‘this doesn’t feel right’ and moving onto the next job.”
Other forces are watching with interest, with Devon recently installing its first TSSO in Holsworthy. A true Cornishman, Josh is proud. “It was very much a Cornish invention, which is now being viewed and spread across the country. It’s really positive for Cornwall to be at the forefront of such a movement.”