Shift patterns could be key to improving Custody roles

SHIFT patterns in South Yorkshire Police may be helping to buck a national trend in custody policing.

According to a recent PFEW survey, the job is seen as the ‘worst in policing’ with nearly a quarter of all custody officers saying they want to be redeployed away from detention duties as soon as possible.

That figure is up from the 19% who said they wanted to quit the role last year.

South Yorkshire Police Federation Chairman Steve Kent says it’s something he will be bringing up with his colleagues in the role, but he’s hopeful that the South Yorkshire force’s working hours and shift patterns are having a positive impact.

“I’ve had a look at the survey’s findings and it obviously it’s really concerning,” he said.

“It’s something that I’m going to ask our custody colleagues about at the first opportunity, but I do believe, on the flip side of that, that in our force the working hours and the shift pattern has made at least a marginal positive effect on the work/life balance.

“They do four on and four off in custody, certainly in Sheffield and in Doncaster too I think, and that proves quite popular. So, there are obviously issues with workload and stress and demand in custody because I’ve been there myself when we can be queueing with six or seven prisoners and it’s an absolute nightmare in there for them.

“I know last time they were over-subscribed for people wanting to go into custody and my friends who have gone into custody have said it’s actually okay. It’s hard work but it’s okay,” he added.

Steve thinks that shift patterns could be a key reason why morale is so low in custody suites across the country

“I need to go in there and understand what the issues are more in terms of the working practices, which I won’t be as aware of as a frontline cop who’s not been on the other side of the desk.

“If I go and speak to ten custody officers, six of them might say, ‘No, I’m totally gutted’, and it might reflect what it says in the custody survey.

“Then I’ll have a bit more of an understanding as to what it is that’s obviously a problem for them, but I think if they were at least to review working hours across the country, I think that could have the positive effect that we’ve seen in our force.”