Quiet day at kiosk

Press, 29 August 1986, Page 5

Quiet day at kiosk

The second day for Cathedral Square’s new police kiosk was fairly quiet. Directions and curious stares were the most the morning staff had to handle, apart from an 8 a.m. misunderstanding about the whereabouts of the kiosk key. The volunteers were optimistic, however, about their role. “It’s going to take a while for the public to get the idea,” said Mr Harry Stanton, retired. His fellow worker, a nurse aide, Ms Fiona Capill, agreed. Both had been prepared for the job by a day’s briefing at the Central Police Station, learning about the structure of the police and how to handle Square regulars. They would all soon go through a St John first aid course also. As the day went on it

grew busier. Wallets were reported found and lost, policemen on the beat gathered for quick cups of coffee, and more inquiries were handled. The sole volunteer kept tabs on a case of a missing eight-year-old boy who had vanished in a city store. A worried father was directed to the Central Police Station to make a report. The boy was later found to have walked to his home in Aranui. After a quick check with the Central Police Station via the kiosk’s direct line, Mrs Margaret Johnstone reflected on why she had offered to staff the kiosk for four hours once a week. “I believe in what the police do and I feel that with the volunteers here assisting, it gives them more of a chance to do what they are meant to be

doing,” she said. The evening shift was even quieter, because of a cold, rain-swept Square. By 9 p.m. the kiosk’s only visitors since 6.30 p.m. had been policemen taking a break from the elements and a reporter of “The Press.” The kiosk co-ordinator, Mr Sandy Brunt, said 18 more people were being trained to start in the kiosk by mid-September, but he still needed more. A roster of about 70 people would make sure there was plenty of backup in the event of sickness or holidays and eventually they hoped to be open all night, instead of closing at midnight. But whatever emergencies the kiosk might face, everyone seems well aware it will be as much an information and community service as anything else.