3:00pm Wednesday 5th August 2009
By Laura Smith
DYSLEXIA awareness training will be held by Essex Police after a young recruit won a claim for discrimination.
The force will introduce the briefing sessions following a meeting of its complaints and professional standards panel.
The move came after dyslexic Owen Brooking, 27, claimed he was treated as if he was “thick and stupid” after he was placed at South Woodham Ferrers station.
He said this effectively forced him out of his job, in January 2006, and he took his complaint to an employment tribunal, in Stratford, east London, which ruled in his favour.
He is now working successfully as a PCSO, in Leigh, where the starting salary was £17,000. However, he was earning £23,000 as a probationer.
Essex Police decided to make changes following some “unsuccessful outcomes in relation to people with disabilities”, which were raised in its report for the first quarter of the year.
This led to the launch of the briefing session.
Essex Police spokeswoman Jenna Smith said the scheme would provide information about dyslexia and advise how the force could assist if someone has the condition She said: “Staff who believe they may have dyslexia can access a screening and support service internally.
“Essex Police strives to comply with and exceed the requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act, while ensuring the recruitment and training of police officers and staff is robust and effective, as is rightly expected by the communities we serve.”
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