An Interview with Pam Mills
Regular readers of the blog will remember I chatted to author and historian Pam Mills back in January 2023 in my POLICING TONBRIDGE article. She was also of invaluable assistance to me during my research of 1890s Tonbridge for inclusion in the 6th Bow Street Society Mystery, The Case of the Pugilist’s Ploy. I’m delighted to be welcoming Pam back to this month’s blog to discuss her new book, her former career in the police, and more.
You’ve previously worked as a Special Constable in the Metropolitan Police. Could you tell us about your most abiding memory from this time?
I was really lucky to have a great cohort of specials that I joined with; we all trained at Arbour Square in Stepney. Inspector Reid was our instructor in 1984/85 and was pro special constabulary. I was posted to K division Hornchurch, where with regular attendance each Friday night, I was accepted by most officers, not just as a special, but as a woman as there were very few, but as long as you got stuck in – it was fine. My first arrest was someone I knew, He didn’t kick off. He just calmly came with me. Then I had to go to court. Now that was daunting, but the court inspector talked me through it, and it was a great experience.
How did this differ from your most abiding memory of working as a police officer for Kent Police?
Having joined Kent in 1986, I had a good underpinning knowledge of offences and being accepted as a woman was not a problem to me, as I am outgoing, and like ‘to do’. However, something that I am happy to share is, the experience I had in the training as a special. I passed on and became an instructor for specials at Gravesend. The professionalism at the time of joining Kent was something to be proud of.
We’ve previously chatted about your book Prevention, Detection & Keepers of the Peace: Policing Tonbridge, a Division of Kent County Constabulary. The first 50 years and more published in 2022. In March 2025 you published a second book about the history of Kent Police called Commanding Kent County Constabulary 1857 – 1957. Could you tell us a little about this second book and your inspiration behind it?
I left the police in November 1995 and had children. When the last one went to university, I went, too! I obtained a BSc Social Sciences (the dissertation was about Kent police in WW1), and a MA in Modern History (the dissertation was about a murder and the criminal justice system of the late Victorian era). I’m now studying for a PhD, the focus of which is the place of a woman in the space of a male dominated organisation, specifically Kent County Constabulary between 1939-1979.
So, as you can see a lot of research and data was accumulated along the way. This inspired me to start at the beginning and look at what part the chief constables played in the development of policing Kent. I have a great friend in Dave Swarbrick who contributed to the book with his research about the military background of the men and additional research. Together, we produced this current book which was published by Tom Andrews and the Thin Blue Line Publishers. I met Tom through my association with the Police History Society, and I have contributed to the journal with historical articles.
This book starts at the beginning and takes you through the first 100 years of policing. Each chapter is dedicated to a chief constable: who were they, where did they live, what did they do before they became chief. Then we talk about what difference they made to policing Kent. The book is fully referenced with archival material and newspaper reports and photographs.
It maps changes within Kent as a Force. An easy read, I believe it would be of interest to anyone who has an interest in policing and social history, plus anyone who wants to gain an understanding of policing in the past.
If you could have coffee with three people (living or dead, famous or unknown), who would you choose, why would you choose them, and what would you talk about?
This is my favourite question,
I’d like to have coffee with Captain Ruxton the first chief constable of Kent. I believe he was a no-nonsense man with a mission. I admire how he took a bunch of what would be labourers transforming them into a professional police force. We would talk about his family and how they fitted into the picture. He clearly loved his wife very much and it was only when she died that he resigned. Would he have gone on serving had she survived the influenza?
The second person would be Dame Cressida Dick, because she was the first female commissioner of the Met Police. I would talk about her life in the Force, what hurdles she faced and how she overcame them. Would she do anything different on reflection?
The final person would be my mum; she died not seeing my teenage years and thus my progress into the police and beyond. Born in Stepney I would chat about her upbringing in the East End and how she saw life, the good and the bad. What hurdles did she face, if any, and how did she overcome them?
Could you give us an insight into your writing process? For example, how much planning is involved, do you have beta readers, etc?
Writing this book, for me was a great experience. Putting a narrative together of all the data gathered took about a year. Researching the archives was not always plain sailing. The trick is not to give up, and when you find some information that is relevant to the subject it is like winning the lottery. The euphoria keeps you going. Once the narrative was put together in a fashion, Dave added to it and then we sent it to beta readers to get feedback.
Once completed, photos were sought from personal sources and the Kent Police Museum. Then it was ready to be sent to the publisher. My advice to anyone is to be patient, this is not a quick process. Act on editing advice and enjoy the process.
What advice would you give to someone who is thinking about writing a non-fiction book?
Try to be as accurate as possible, reveal the hidden history like it’s a treasure you have discovered, and be passionate about what you do. Mine as many archives as you can and be patient it won’t happen overnight. Once you get a storyline going, explore, examine and write ….just write….. don’t worry about grammar until the editing. You can’t edit nothing!
I’d like to thank Pam Mills for taking the time to chat with me today. The history of policing, regardless of where the force is located, has always fascinated me. The connection between my Bow Street Society books and the Kent Constabulary puts this particular force close to my heart.You can buy Commanding Kent County Constabulary 1857 – 1957 by clicking on the button below.
~ T.G. Campbell, July 2025
Did you work in the Kent police, or do you know someone who did? Comment below with your memories.
Leave a Reply