“The Government has pushed policing to its knees” says Federation Chair

A shocking 86% of West Yorkshire Police officers feel ‘worse off’ financially now than they were five years ago, new research has found.

And 16% ‘never’ or ‘almost never’ have enough money to cover all their essentials, according to the 2022 Police Federation of England and Wales Pay and Morale Report, published this month.

More than 1,090 officers responded to the research, which found that a shocking 98% had seen living cost increases in the previous month.

85% of respondents said they were dissatisfied with their pay.

Last year police officers across England and Wales were given an average of a 5% pay rise – but this was way below inflation booming now at more than 10%. Household bills are rising sharply and over the past 12 years police officer pay has fallen in real terms by 25%.
Officers are struggling with poor morale and lack of support, the survey found. A huge 95% of officers said they do not feel respected by the Government, and 86% per cent said morale at the force was ‘low’ or ‘low’.

Officers are also coming under attack from the public, the report showed, with 16% having suffered one or more injuries that required medical attention as a result of work-related violence in the last year.

Low mood and poor wellbeing are a problem at the force; 68% said they do not feel valued within the service, and seven in ten (72%) said they would not recommend joining up to others.

Sadly, more than four fifths of respondents from West Yorkshire Police (83%) 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 43% said that they find their job ‘very’ or ‘extremely’ stressful.

Worryingly, 16% of respondents told researchers that they intend to resign from the police service either ‘within the next two years’ or ‘as soon as [they] can’.

Craig Nicholls, Chair of West Yorkshire Police Federation, said: “The pay and morale survey captures how the Government’s erosion of our pay and conditions has affected the morale within my membership.

“The Government have pushed policing to its knees, and this survey reflects the real feelings of real people.

“We need real term funding, a truly independent pay review body and more investment in to policing.”

Page last updated Wednesday 11th January, 2023 at 0950hrs

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