POLICE_WORLD_4_2016

Professional Development

C.O.P.S Defensive Tactics seminar 2016 Martin Cooper , IPA-DTG chairman

In June, 2016, the IPA special interest group, the Defensive Tactics Group hosted the 20th anniversary of the COPS international seminar. It was organised by the Prison Service in Rawicz and was held at the Recreation Centre in Golina, Poland. The COPS seminar is a place where similar minded officers from all over the world share friendship and best practice on the subject of Officer Safety and the first seminar was held in Puck, Poland in 1996. T he seminar was attended by around 50 participants, from Law Enforcement, Prisons and security operatives COPS attracts officers from all over Europe, but 2016 was the first time a large contingent of officers from Belgium had attended. They thoroughly enjoyed the seminar and one officer stated that he had learnt more in the three days, were handed out. This was followed by a barbeque, in typical Polish fashion, where everyone sat round the fire pit, eating wild boar

and toasting the success of the seminar. Anyone considering attending a future COPS international can obtain details via our website: www.ipa-dtg.com or go to our facebook page: IPA-DTG .

Teaching at the seminar were IPA members, Slavo Gozdzik (Swedish police force), Rob Stenhouse and Keith Sinclair (North Wales Police) and Martin Cooper (retired Lancashire Constabulary). Over the three days the attendees were taught various modules within the sphere of Officer Safety and included self-defence, ground defence, control & restraint, spontaneous edged weapon survival tactics and use of the baton and short stick.

than fifteen years of practicing martial arts. Talks are already underway to take the COPS international seminar to Brussels in 2018. Tired and bruised after hours of hard work, everyone attended a presentation on the Saturday evening, where attendance certificates

POLICE WORLD Vol 61 No. 4, 2016

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