\u201cIT is a risk that we\u2019ve got so many officers who are inexperienced.\u201d<\/p>\n
The new influx of officers is very welcome, South Yorkshire Police Federation has said, but it can put a strain on frontline teams.<\/p>\n
Chair Steve Kent was responding to a report from the Public Accounts Committee outlining that up to a third of all police officers in England and Wales will be inexperienced if the Government hits its target of recruiting 2,000 extra PCs by March.<\/p>\n
Steve said: \u201cAll our new recruits are very welcome and we don\u2019t in any way want to belittle the fact that they\u2019re coming in.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut they\u2019re coming in such sheer numbers that they\u2019re hitting the ground running and not necessarily having enough time to learn the trade like officers used to be able to do.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is a bit of a concern that we\u2019re losing a lot of experienced officers, and that those on the frontline are now not as experienced. But the balance of that is that we have enthusiasm on the frontline.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe just need to make sure that the uplift continues and that we get people who can stay in these frontline roles in years to come, so we\u2019re not just hit with cliff edges like we\u2019ve had where we\u2019re squeezing 20,000 officers through the door.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe cannot fault or criticise the enthusiasm. But there\u2019s no two ways about it, it is a risk that we\u2019ve got so many officers who are inexperienced. It\u2019s such a high percentage on teams, and that can put a strain on things when we don\u2019t have officers who are 100% confident in what they\u2019re doing. But we will get there.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a better problem to have than not to have those officers. But it needs to be followed up with consistent investment.\u201d<\/p>\n