New Training Directives Will Put Off Experienced Officer Joining The Service

NEW training directives will put off experienced, talented recruits from joining the service, South Yorkshire Police Federation has warned.

From April next year, all officers will have to have a degree – or gain one – to join up, following a change in Police Regulations.

Steve Kent, South Yorkshire Police Federation Chair, said the move will be beneficial for younger officers who will train and gain a degree simultaneously, but that older officers will be discouraged.

He said: “This ties in with the bigger issue about how we want to attract our police officers. I think there are going to be a lot of good people with some really relevant life experience and work experience who are going to be put off by this because they don’t necessarily want to have that kind of degree to join policing, or they don’t have a degree to join policing.

“This move does not cater for the variety of people we need in policing. If we want to attract more mature recruits as well, they’re not necessarily going to have a degree and they’re not necessarily going to want a degree. So, for me, it’s closing the door on some really good potential people for policing. It’s shrinking the variety of who we’re going to have coming into policing which, coupled with the poor pay, could become a real problem.”

Steve warned that forces could struggle to fill roles in the future as a result.

He added: “We may argue that the northern forces might find it easier than southern forces because of they increased cost of living down south. But I think it’s fair to say a lot of northern forces are observing that there is a slowdown in terms of suitable people coming into policing, and that has got to be a concern for us. Not just in the short-term but also in the medium-term. How can we attract the best people for a job that pays basic wages for our new recruits coming in?”