UK cops warm to new life in Tauranga

By Carly Udy
When they lived in Britain, police officers like Lee Stringer and Emma Buxton were walking targets and had to deal with violent crime every day.
But now the former British bobbies are looking forward to giving their eight-month-old son Maxwell a better lifestyle - and boosting Tauranga's police force while they're at it.
Lee Stringer and his fiancee Emma Buxton are two of four British police officers due to start at Tauranga's central police station in three months.
One hundred new officers have been recruited from the United Kingdom without advertising from a database of nearly 2000 officers who expressed interest in moving here.
Police say the request from British officers to come here is "constant". All of the new arrivals have taken a pay cut of up to 40 per cent to work in New Zealand.
Mr Stringer's former home was in Bollington, England, where up until a week ago, the 28 year-old and Ms Buxton, 27, were working as constables for Greater Manchester and Derbyshire Police.
Now the couple are soaking up "stunning" Tauranga with their eight-month-old son Maxwell - swapping their white-shirt uniforms for blue in the hope of giving their son a better and safer lifestyle.
"There's some serious fishing to be done out there," Mr Stringer said yesterday, as he gestured towards the glistening waters of Tauranga Harbour.
"Where I lived I had to drive four hours to get to the sea."
Ms Buxton and Mr Stringer, who met at police college in Britain four years ago, will be joined in Tauranga by constable Tim Bonner, 28, who has five years' experience in the Metropolitan Police. His wife Kelly, arrives in New Zealand in July.
Meanwhile, Detective Sergeant Nigel Ramsden, 40, who has 20 years experience with West Yorkshire Police, will soon be joined in the Bay by his pregnant wife Tamara and children Jordan,10, and Holly, 2.
The four police officers start an 11-week conversion course at the Police College at Porirua this Sunday - a cross between a senior and a recruit course with more emphasis on self-directed learning.
Ms Buxton and Mr Stringer will put Maxwell in daycare, while studying in Porirua, but said a search would be on for a "grandma or nanny" on their return.
Tauranga Police Sergeant Carl Purcell said the four new officers - currently being billeted by Tauranga police staff - were the first he knew of recruited to Tauranga from the UK.
The station already has two ex-UK policemen. Mr Purcell was thrilled with the intake, all of whom bring new skills.
The foursome found out about the recruitment drive via email and said it was the Kiwi lifestyle and climate that convinced them to put their names forward.
All were also happy to escape the "yobo" culture and over-populated areas. Mr Ramsden's policing division (Kirklees) covered a population of 400,000.
The officers, who will all start off as constables here despite their previous ranks, said crime was getting increasingly worse in Britain.
"Cops are getting shot in the UK. There's been a couple shot and killed in the last three years and that's just in my area in West Yorkshire," Mr Ramsden said.
"We all appreciate coming here," Mr Bonner added.
Ms Buxton said she had already fallen in love with her new city.
"It's really trendy, it's got nice shops, cafes...and you've got the beach! It's stunning."
Mr Ramsden, who is the only one of the four to have visited New Zealand before.