WEST Devon policeman Stewart Pearce returned to the rain-drenched streets of the mainland recently sporting an unseasonal tan.

He had just spent three weeks maintaining law and order on the Isles of Scilly.

The islands are not renowned for a high level of crime — there are very few drive-by shootings and almost no bank robberies — so the five inhabited islands of St Mary's, St Martin's, St Agnes, Tresco and Bryher are patrolled by just two police officers — sergeant Ivan Trethewey and PC Colin Taylor, plus a couple of specials at weekends.

PC Taylor was leaving for a three week break, so Stewart volunteered to fill his size elevens. Normally Devon and Cornwall police would fly somebody in from Penzance, 20 minutes away by helicopter — but the various force commanders agreed to the unusual secondment.

'I'd been on holiday to the islands and I found myself drawn to their beauty,' said Stewart. 'I spoke to PC Taylor to ask how he got the job and how he found it. He told me he was going away on holiday and perhaps I'd like to fill in for him for three weeks — it sounded like my sort of job.'

Stewart was met by Sgt. Trethewey when he arrived early last month and shown to the police house. This is part of the station on the main island of St Mary's. Here there is also a court presided over by the island's own magistrates.

'You're never really off duty over there — If you arrest someone, you would have to get the other bloke in to be custody officer or vice versa and the locals feel free to bang on your door any time of the day or night,' he said.

The police get about the island by bicycle mostly. There is a Land Rover. But with only nine miles of road and the weather often quite clement it hardly seems worth starting it up.

'You can virtually get anywhere on the island in 10 minutes by bike and in all the time I was there we didn't get a single 'prompt' call, let alone an 'immediate',' he said.

During his stay Stewart only had to deal with a couple of thefts and arrested only one person — a migrant worker from off the island.

Apart from the innate crimelessness of the islanders and the level of trust within the community, the fact that they are island communities makes crime sometimes a little pointless — what would you do if you nicked a car with only nine miles of road?

And anyway, all regular exits from the islands can be quickly shut down.

Stewart said the job was mostly one of community policing, in which he is well experienced as the community officer for Horrabridge and Yelverton.

One of his jobs entailed making checks for a firearms licence on St Agnes.

'I went across on the ferry in the morning, met the man on the beach and walked across the island to do the checks. That was that until the next ferry at five o'clock!' he said. 'But it gave me a chance to meet everybody and find out if they had any problems — that's an important part of the job. They don't get to see the police very often.

'It's a quiet job, but you are very much at the centre of the community and required 24 hours a day — a bit like the old style of policing. I'd like to see that more over here and I think it is coming back. It's very rare you catch people 'in the act' these days — we depend on public assistance. It's very important to get to know your public and for them to warm to you because then the more they will help you and keep you informed.'

Stewart added that the man he was visiting didn't like to leave St Agnes very much. He said he found St Mary's too busy.

Stewart was surprised as well that most of the islanders, if they did take holidays, seemed to go to other islands. One man regularly visited relatives on the island of Skye.

Policing is a little different to the Tavistock metropolis in other ways. For example noise is very strictly controlled, especially at night, and near hospitals and churches. And, according to local bylaws, it is forbidden to hassle people going into or out of church. It is also forbidden to lead a bull over 10-months-old on the street unless it is kept under proper control — presumably baby bulls are well-behaved.

Stewart said he was concerned about the future for the islands with the young generation going to the mainland, getting degrees and wanting to be a part of the big world beyond the sparkling white beaches of the Scillies.

'There's not really the opportunity there for them to earn money and lead the lives they want. It will be interesting seeing what's going to happen over the next 20 to 30 years,' he said.

Although it sounds like there are entrepreneurial opportunities to be had. The islands are littered with wrecks going back thousands of years. Even with modern navigational aids ships still crash into the treacherous low lying islands, washing goodies up on the beach. Notable recently was a container full of shoes, which can still be found from time to time.

Any materials salvaged have to be reported to the receiver of wrecks. Often finders are allowed to keep what they find, sometimes with the payment of a small fee. One man apparently found a pair of tractor tyres, which he was allowed to keep for a fiver. He was subsequently able to sell them on the mainland for £1,500.

Boats obviously play an important part in island life and early this summer the Isles of Scilly play host again to the world gig rowing championships.

It is the boats that attract Stewart above all to the Scillies and when the job of island constable comes around shortly, as it does every two years, he will be applying to take up the post full-time.