Ciara can’t beat graduating as Bobby

A LIMERICK woman has swapped the drill of the army barracks square for the beat of a London Bobby.

Ciara Fitzgerald graduated as a member of the London Met proudly wearing her Irish defence forces service medal.

Before heading for England and a career in the police, Ciara served with the Reserve Defence Force (RDF) at Limerick’s Sarsfield Barracks home of the 12th Infantry Battalion.

Ciara, aged 27, from High Meadows, Gouldavoher, graduated as a London ‘Bobby’ at a passing out parade at the Met training centre in Hendon.

She was one of 95 rookie officers who received their London Met diplomas from Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone.

And she proudly had her RDF service medal pinned to her uniform.

Ciara said: “I had set my sights on joining the London police for some years and was thrilled when I got the call up to train at Hendon.”

After completing her Leaving Cert at Scoil Carmel in Limerick she worked in Peter Clohessy’s rugby pub and with a finance firm in Shannon.

At weekends she concentrated on developing soldiering skills at Sarsfield Barracks.

Ciara said: “I came to London over a year ago and worked for a time in the administration section at Tottenham Hotspur where I got to know many of the players. I really was thrilled to get into the police force. It promises to be such an exciting and challenging career and I love London.”

Her beat will take in the Redbridge area of north east London.

After six months there she will return to Hendon for more study and later will be given the opportunity to do specialist police work.

But her next big assignment will be back in her native Limerick on June 8.

Ciara will be bridesmaid at her twin sister Danielle’s wedding to David Clohessy.

Her parents Gerry and Teresa Fitzgerald along with sisters, Danielle, Emma and Tara all travelled to Hendon for Ciara’s graduation.