How an intelligence DCI followed his grandfather into policing

Temp DCI David Ball first joined the police because of his grandfather, and felt inspired to 'serve the public and give something back.' 

He says: 'My granddad was a police inspector in Nottinghamshire and he ultimately said he joined the police because he wanted to help people. And so to me he was a bit of a role model at the time and I thought, "that’s what I want to do".'

David, who has a Master's of Science degree in Criminology and Criminal Justice, has always had an interest in intelligence and spent much of his career in the CID and financial investigation.

After 10 years at Leicestershire Police, David transferred to Derbyshire Police, where he works as a temporary intelligence detective chief inspector – helping plain-clothed police officers in the proactive unit to assess risk, prioritise operations and enforce warrants.

My advice to somebody who wanted to go down the intelligence route is learn the intelligence model, what does that practically look like? Try and get yourself an attachment to the division, the intelligence unit. Being energetic in terms of your pursuit of the truth around intelligence. Questioning that piece of intelligence in terms of, well, where's it come from. Testing the veracity of that intelligence: Is it accurate? Is it reliable?

Temp DCI David Ball

Opportunities in the intelligence world

Hear from temp DCI David Ball about his career progression and how he has inspired the next generation of officers.

Find out more about the intelligence career family pathway and the role profile. And discover the different ways you could work for the police and be a force for good in your community, a force for all.

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