Page 4 - WMPF Federation June-July 2021_Neat

Chair’s introduction

Policing is

under huge

pressure

keynote speech to the update on the new training to provide a high-quality service for
conduct regulations and from the trial by the public.
media panel discussion to the focus on Put the tutors under too much pressure
investigators. and you are creating a system in which they
Policing is very much under pressure and will burn out and both they and the new
that pressure seems to be coming from all recruits under their guidance will suffer.
directions and all angles. More emphasis has to be put on what is
Even in areas where there are some happening behind the scenes rather than
reasons to feel optimistic, we are still facing just measuring the success of the
additional difficulties. recruitment drive by the headline figures
Take for example the recruitment drive. and this is something we as a Federation are
The Prime Minister announced ambitious paying close attention to.
plans to recruit 20,000 officers over a Another success has been the campaign
three-year period late in 2019. Of course, we led by our own deputy secretary Tim Rogers
welcomed this. Officer numbers had been which will mean, through the Police, Crime,
plummeting for more than 10 years and that Sentencing and Courts Bill, that officers will
has placed a huge demand on our existing no longer have their driving measured by the
workforce, particularly when you take into standards of the careful and competent
account the fact that there was no driver. However, as you can find out on Page
corresponding fall in crime or calls for 32, Tim fears that the current wording of the
assistance over that same period. new legislation could serve to criminalise
By Jon Nott, chair of West Midlands Police We are making good progress with officers further. Again, the Federation is
Federation recruitment but it does not end there, of working on this.
course. Officers who act as tutors are finding While these are just two current issues,
his edition of our members’ magazine themselves with a heavy burden. Tutoring is and there are, of course, many others, it is
centres around the Police Federation’s demanding and it is also critically important. quite heartening to hear that we appear to
Tannual national conference which, A good tutor will help create an effective have the support of the Home Secretary.
just like so many other events over the last multi-skilled officer, equipped with the Sadly, our conference didn’t afford us the
15 months or so, was held virtually.
While it may have been missing the buzz “ Policing is very much under pressure and that
of a live conference, I believe it did throw the pressure seems to be coming from all directions
spotlight on the key issues that are currently
affecting the police service and individual and all angles. Even in areas where there are
officers.
The theme of conference was Policing some reasons to feel optimistic, we are still facing
Under Pressure and that was a thread that
ran through all sessions from the chair’s additional difficulties. “

04 federation June/July 2021 www.polfed.org/westmids