The museum was very fortunate to receive a recent donation of photographs and memorabilia relating to the Parks Police career of Syd Yale who served between 1970 and 2003, rising to the rank of senior sergeant before taking retirement.
This donation has helped to fill in a number of gaps in the history of the Birmingham Parks Police, a little-known force in the history of policing the West Midlands.
Until this date, the only records held by the museum are a record of the death of PC William Corbett who was struck by lightning whilst on duty in Calthorpe Park, PC William Savage who choked and died whilst on duty and PC Jean Summers, who joined the force as a dog handler after leaving West Midlands Police in the mid-1970s.
We are fortunate to the British Police History website for their thorough references on the history of the Parks Police, which documents the creation of the force in 1912, significant changes during the 1960s and final transformation in 1991 to the Park Ranger Patrol which still exists today within Birmingham City Council.
Syd married his sweetheart Hazel when they were 19 and at this point was a lorry driver, after serving three years in the army in the late 1950s. He expected to have seen the world with the military but actually never left the country!
He was the first member of the family to join the police after applying to the newly created Birmingham Parks Patrol in 1970. 1969 marked the end of the short-lived Park Rangers, created from the disbanding of the original Parks Police in 1963. Their police powers had been removed and uniforms drastically changed to green. They were also expected to undertake gardening and labouring duties. None of this was popular with the workforce or the public and a petition was presented to Birmingham City Council with over 400 signatures, leading to the creation of the Parks Patrol.
At its inception, the Parks Patrol had 76 officers spread over three divisions. Each division had two sergeants and one inspector.
Syd was promoted from basic patrolman to driver in July 1970 and again to sergeant in September 1971. He was commended numerous times during his career, including several times by the Chief Superintendent of Selly Oak Police Station thanking him and his colleague and friend Jim Addis for their help apprehending youths for stealing cars and riding motorcycles over park grounds. One incident for which Syd received a letter of thanks, related to his courage in apprehending two armed men in Icknield Port Road, Ladywood, in 1973.
Syd recalled in a write-up for the local paper after his retirement: “Every park and space in and around Birmingham was surrounded by strong timber fencing which was locked nightly, and if, in the course of our patrols, we found someone inside the site after closing time, they stood a good chance of having their details noted down together with the warning that they may be prosecuted under the city’s byelaws.” They didn’t only patrol the parks, and Jim recalled that they would also help to police concerts and festivals being held in the city. The officers worked permanent 15:00 to 23:59 shifts throughout the year, so were able to report strange sightings and goings on to local Birmingham City Police officers, particularly on the way back to their depots, helping to build strong relationships with the city force.
Syd and Jim cheekily wrote directly to the Chief Constable of West Midlands Police in November 1974, suggesting that Birmingham Amenities and Recreation Department Security Force be extended to form a Corporation Police Force. The Deputy Chief Constable duly wrote back and stated unfortunately, he couldn’t really comment and they should take it up with their superiors!
Syd continued to serve with the Park Ranger Patrol until 2003, when he finally retired in the position of senior sergeant. Sadly Syd died from a brain tumour in 2011. Syd and Hazel had three children, Angela, Helen and John. John followed in his father’s footsteps and joined West Midlands Police in 1989, serving until 2019. John stated that his decision to join the police was more due to the money and stability offered by the job, rather than an inclination to be a police officer like his Dad. Whilst he was growing up, the consistent late shifts worked by his father meant the family rarely saw him.
John’s daughter Jemma continued the family tradition, also joining the force, initially as a PCSO in 2007 and from 2009 as a police constable. Jemma recalls the very special environment living in a police house next to Kingswinford Police Station, often seeing the officers who had come to see her Dad and attending various events like police dances organised for police families.