Behind The Nomination: Charis Abraham

From a career change “on a whim” to leading major investigations, Charis’s story shows what saying yes to something new can achieve. 

When Charis joined the police in May 2021 through the DHEP programme, it wasn’t the fulfilment of a lifelong dream. In fact, policing hadn’t crossed her mind at all. Before this career change, she worked for English Heritage as an events coordinator, travelling from Cornwall and Devon to the castles of Chester organising historical battle re-enactments and living‑history events.  

She’s quick to point out that she never dressed up.  

But when the pandemic hit, the events world was disrupted overnight. She was furloughed, and even when restrictions began to ease, the job she returned to was no longer the one she loved.  

After three years, she realised she needed something completely different. 

While chatting with her parents about what to do next, her dad mentioned a Degree Holder Entry Programme (DHEP) route into policing. She applied almost on a whim, assuming she wouldn’t get in. “It honestly could have been anything,” she laughs now. “I just thought, let’s try something else.” 

That “something else” led her to the Criminal Investigations Unit (CID) in Bristol , where she has spent the last few years building investigative experience far beyond what she imagined when she first applied. She admits she never had a clear expectation of what the job would be like; she simply stepped into it with an open mind. 

Her nomination centres on her role within a large operation, where she was the Officer in Charge on a case that would prove to be the largest of her career to date.  

Her team came on shift the morning after the incident and picked up the investigation from the very start. From there, she plunged straight into a major investigation, reviewing huge amounts of CCTV, conducting arrests, managing witness material, and helping to coordinate the wider team. The file submitted to CPS was enormous, she says, far beyond the scale of a typical CID case.  

Despite the complexity of the case, the small team successfully identified all four perpetrators and secured charges. 

She’s still taken aback when people assume she has decades of experience. She laughs that it’ll only be five years in May “which feels insane” and yet her work speaks far beyond her years of service. 

Outside of work, she describes her hobbies as “lame”, though they paint a picture of someone grounded and balanced: reading, open‑water swimming, spending time with friends.  

Her motivation, however, is clear. She feels strongly about supporting people who’ve had difficult lives, whether victims or suspects. “Victims don’t deserve what’s happened to them. It’s nice to be able to say, we believe you, we see you, and we’re going to do something about it.” That sense of purpose, of making a meaningful difference in someone’s life drives her day to day. 

Being nominated means a lot, she admits. The team put in long hours, sacrificed rest days, and navigated a huge, complex case together. For many of them, it was the first investigation of that scale. “It’s nice to feel like that’s been seen,” she says. “Even though it still feels like… well, it’s my job.” Her parents, however, have no hesitation in celebrating loudly. “They’re very proud — and very embarrassing,” she smiles.  

For anyone considering a policing career, her message is simple: give it a go. She describes the environment as welcoming, far removed from the stereotypes shaped by TV dramas or headlines. She wants people to understand that policing isn’t just about arrests. It’s about listening, helping, guiding someone to safety, supporting them through the worst moment of their life. “You help people every day,” she says. “And that’s the most rewarding part.”