Low Police Pay Recommendation Needs Redressing

Low police pay deals are exactly why officers need industrial rights, the Chair of South Yorkshire Police Federation has said, following the news that Chief Constables have recommended officers receive a pay award of just 3.8%.

In its recent submission to the Police Remuneration Review Body (PRRB), The National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) recommended an annual pay uplift of 3.8% for officers from September 2025. Meanwhile, staff associations for chief officers and Superintendents and Chief Superintendents have recommended a higher pay uplift of 4.8%.

South Yorkshire Police Federation Chair Steve Kent said: “These figures are just not enough. We’re already 21% down in real terms since 2009. What I want to see is a 21% rise, though I’m realistic enough to know that’s unlikely to be in one lump. That needs to be a structured rise. In other words, if the Government said three years of 7% plus inflation, that would get us broadly to where we need to be.”

Steve continued: “We’re backing the PFEW’s industrial rights campaign – our region started that whole conversation. And this is exactly why it’s needed, because there’s still no recognition of the pay degradation over the past 14 years in policing.

“These figures of 3.8% and 4.8%, some officers would probably accept that. I certainly wouldn’t. It needs to go higher. This is why we need industrial rights, because at the moment the pay review body is not fit for purpose. We have no power to stop the Government implementing whatever they want. We need this redressing as soon as possible.”