PC Laura Bryant   played by Melanie Kilburn

First appearance    # 278 (13/01/05)  

Bradford-born Laura Bryant was an intelligent woman and natural leader, skills she came to depend upon when she first arrived at Sun Hill as a PCSO. A mother of two from the infamous Cole Lane estate, Laura knew full well how the fringes of society operated, and when the opportunity of becoming a PCSO arose, it appealed greatly. Laura worked as a secretary for a small firm of solicitors for many years; she always aspired to greater things but having two kids, without a father being around, meant that a lot of plans were put on hold. She couldn't stand injustice and wanted to give something back to the community - and so the role of police officer seemed a natural step to take, especially now that her kids were a little older. She had a genuine rapport with the people she came across in her job as she knew full well the difficulties of living in a rough neighbourhood. The proverbial salt of the earth, she may have been working class, with two sons to bring up on her own; but Laura had high standards. Putting up with pimps, loan sharks and pushers making life miserable where she lived simply was not an option for her.

Laura's only previous contact with the police was through Gabriel Kent and the experience proved to be a traumatic one. Gabriel had been organising his own brand of justice when the law was unable to deal with a bunch of troublemakers on the estate, and Laura became increasingly fed up with his extreme tactics, reporting him and his hired heavies to CID.

Although in her early days she made mistakes, it didn’t take Sgt. Smith long to recognise that she had the potential to make a really good PC. It was unfortunate that his encouragement coincided with a time when Laura feared that her son, Liam, was being bullied because of her association with the police. Once the bullies were caught and it became clear that this was not the cause, she seized the opportunity to go to Hendon and train as a PC. However, a little under a year later, Laura realised that the long hours of the job were causing her to neglect her sons. At Inspector Gold's insistence, she opted for a transfer to a unit at Barton Street that would suit a single parent.