Behind the badge: Sergeant Tem Hawkes

Sergeant Tem Hawkes

Graduated: 2006

Station: North West Metro Division 2 Proactive Policing Unit

Why did you join Victoria Police?

I was drawn to policing because it offered a career where no two days would ever be the same. I wanted work that challenged me, required me to think on my feet, and gave me the opportunity to make a real difference in people’s lives and I felt, “I’m up to that task”.

What kept me in the job is the privilege of being there for people during some of the most important moments of their lives – whether that’s helping someone through a crisis, supporting victims, or simply being the person they can turn to when they need help. It’s one of those very few professions where you can see the direct impact of what you do each day.

Tell us about your career.

I first became employed as a Victorian Public Service staff member in 2004 at a couple of central areas that provide support to frontline and specialist work units. This was a deliberate move to get to know the organisation from the inside before taking a leap into the academy.

I spent my first four or five years as a sworn member in the Southern Metro Region (then known as Region 5) working general duties and on a local family violence team before branching out to a couple of specialist state-based units in the areas of liquor licensing, then road policing.

After all that time in roles that were far from the frontline, I was back to ‘working the van’ in North West Metro Division 2 in 2016 and I quite liked it. It wasn’t long before I started acting in the sergeant role, both in uniform sections and at our divisional tasking and coordination – that way, I got to know the division quite well and provided my own long-lasting contributions along the way.

In 2019, I was successful at being promoted to the Proactive Policing Unit (PPU), leading the Youth Tasking Team, where I’ve been ever since.

Can you explain what the PPU does and the best thing about working in the unit?

Our PPU provides support to the division in the areas of crime prevention, community engagement, support for families and cultural liaison. Specific to my team within the unit, we focus on youth. As well as supporting schools in our division, we maintain a strong partnership with Victorian Child Protection Services, who we collaborate with to support and protect the most vulnerable young people, particularly those in out-of-home care who are the most vulnerable to sexual and/or criminal exploitation.

The best part has to be my team. They are dedicated to what they do and everyone at the PPU is there because they want to be there.

What is a career highlight that stands out for you?

That’s a hard one because there have been a few.

My proudest moment yet would be being nominated for and shortlisted as a finalist for the annual Victorian Protecting Children Awards, hosted by the Department of Families Fairness & Housing in the category of ‘Keeping Young People Safe’. Although we didn’t walk away with the award on the night, being in a room full of other people striving for the same outcomes for young people was, to me, the highest honour and a huge acknowledgement of the work we do, especially with that acknowledgement coming from outside of our own organisation.

A very close second would be when I was chosen to attend the Youth Technologies and Virtual Communities Conference hosted by Queensland Police Taskforce Argos in 2024. I was surrounded by delegates from all over the world to share ideas and collaborate on strategies to protect children from predators in the online space.

What is a policing moment that stands out to you?

We recently had a young Aboriginal person in out-of-home care being supplied drugs and sexually exploited by an adult. We had no idea who this adult was. All we had was a first name and a very obscure photo. We worked together with Child Protection for six months before identifying them and putting in place an intervention order.

The adult contravened this order several times. Our team put a stop to this by arresting this person and placing them into custody for several months. It was remarkable how quickly the young person seemed to recover once the adult was taken out of equation. They became much more engaged with their care provider and education, and they stopped using substances. It’s frightening to think what path they would have taken if we hadn’t been there to intervene.

Having worked closely with vulnerable young people, what’s something you’ve learned?

To sum it up in one line – “We can’t arrest our way out”.

Something I have learned with young people is that there’s always a driver to their behaviour behind the scenes. If they’re engaging in criminal behaviour, we have to look deeper into what is going on in their lives to what sort of trauma and upbringing has led them to that.

We often let ourselves get caught in a cycle of arresting and going through a criminal process that’s designed as a ‘one size fits all’. Dealing with young people is an entirely different game and we have that opportunity to make a difference early in their lives to prevent them growing up into criminals. We do this by drawing in services, getting the right people involved and, where possible, including their parents or caregivers in the conversation.

Most importantly, we must act quickly. I’ve seen firsthand how rapidly a young person can spiral out of control without any sort of intervention or support. Once things reach that point, it’s very hard to bring them back.

To find out more visit police careers.

Editorial Sarah Larsen
Photography Jesse Wray-McCann

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