Norfolk Police Fed: Officers will continue leaving without better pay
20% of Norfolk Police officers who responded to a new survey said they intend to resign from the service
Skills and experienced officers will continue leaving the Police unless more money's put into it, says the man representing them in Norfolk.
A survey by the County's Police Federation says over three quarters of officers here, feel financially ‘worse off’ now compared to 2020.
"A honest conversation around what the public and Government want us to be doing"
Andy Symonds says the status quo isn't sustainable:
"In order to turn this around, we need to invest in those who are working to deliver a good Police service across Norfolk.
"That means giving them fair pay-rises, but also ensuring that there's a honest conversation around what the public and Government want us to be doing as a service more generally".
He adds that changes around how pay's decided is desperately needed:
"The current system is not independent, in our view, and we want to move to position which involves 'collective bargaining.
"What we have at the moment, has led to a 20 per cent real-terms reduction on where we should be, as Police officers, if we didn't have austerity and the poor pay-awards which we've had over the last few years.
The survey in more detail:
According to the 2024 Police Federation of England and Wales Pay and Morale Report - 86% of respondents have seen living cost increases in the previous month and 65% of officers are dissatisfied with their pay.
20% of Norfolk Police officers who responded to the survey said they intend to resign from the police service either ‘within the next two years’ or ‘as soon as they can’.
Whilst Police Officers received a 4.75% pay rise in 2024, the Federation says officer pay has reduced by a fifth since 2010.
Nationally 76% of officers responding to the PFEW Pay and Morale survey say their pay does not reflect the dangers they face and a third of officers struggle to afford essentials such as food, rent, or heating.
Officers are also said to be struggling with low morale and lack of support, the survey found.
93% of Norfolk Police officers said they do not feel respected by the Government, and 54% said they were experiencing low morale.
72% of respondents from Norfolk Police said that they would not recommend joining the police to others. 70% said they do not feel valued within the service.
Officers are reportedly coming under attack from the public too, the report showed, with 15% having suffered one or more injuries that required medical attention as a result of work-related violence in the last year.
12% of officers who responded reported having access to double crewing at all times whilst on duty.
60% of respondents from Norfolk Police said that over the last 12 months, their workload has been ‘too high’ or ‘much too high’.
3% of officers said that they have ‘never’ or ‘rarely’ been able to take an 11-hour break between shifts in the last 12 months and 30% said they feel ‘always’ or ‘often’ feel pressured into working long hours.
83% of respondents from Norfolk Police indicated that they had experienced feelings of stress, low mood, anxiety, or other difficulties with their health and wellbeing over the last 12 months, and 42% said that they find their job ‘very’ or ‘extremely’ stressful.
The survey is based on 485 responses received from Norfolk Police officers.
What's the Government said on this?
The Home Office says it's putting nearly £20 billion into policing over this year and next- an uptick of more than a billion on the previous settlement.