How do police feel about their job?

As part of our major study on attitudes to policing and crime in England and Wales, we conducted a survey of more than 500 police staff in the two nations — including more than 250 police officers — examining their views on their work, the challenges they face in their roles, and their attitudes towards leadership, policing policy, and the wider criminal justice system.

For those on the force, their job is typically a point of pride, with 80% of police officers in England and Wales saying they are proud of the job they do, including 35% who say they are very proud of their work.

But despite this, just 25% of police officers feel appreciated by the general public, with three times as many (75%) feeling they get little to no appreciation for the job they do.

In fact, backroom staff are more likely than police officers to feel proud of their job (89%) and to feel appreciated for that work, albeit still at the relatively low rate of 35%.

Close to nine in ten police officers (86%) believe their jobs have got harder in the last five years, with fully 93% feeling the force is both underfunded and understaffed.

In fact, when asked to tell us in their own words what one thing they would change about policing, increased funding and staffing was, by a clear margin, the most mentioned aspect by police officers (by 45%), who stressed their belief that “More officers would cut crime”, that “We are spread way too thinly” and that “The police is failing because no one is willing to fund it appropriately”.

When asked what one thing they would change about policing, police officers primarily express that the most critical changes needed in policing revolve around increasing officer numbers and improving funding (45%), as many feel resources are stretched too thin and this impacts both safety and effectiveness.

• “Most of the issues faced by policing are linked to a lack of money and resources.” (Sergeant, 46, male)
• “More funding. The police is failing because no one is willing to fund it appropriately.” (Constable, 34, female)
• “The current funding formula is unfair, cops are tired and run the risk of burnout.” (Sergeant, 40, male)
• “Better funding so there are more cops to be able to do what we want to do to help the public. We are spread way too thinly.” (Inspector, 45, female)
• “All resources are stretched to the limit and cannot cope with demands.” (Sergeant, 49, male)

Other major themes include calls to reduce paperwork and bureaucracy to allow more direct, front-line engagement; depoliticise policing so officers can focus on core duties without external pressures; and improve both public perception and internal leadership culture, as negative media coverage and a disconnect with senior management can erode morale.

• “Too much paperwork means that police officers spend more time at a computer than they do out patrolling or responding to incidents.” (Constable, 29, male)
• “Less paperwork and more operational policing.” (Sergeant, 45, male)
• “Paperwork, too much of it and needless hoops to jump through - needs a more streamlined [process].” (Constable, 40, male)
• “We drown in policy documents, SOPs and rules. As I type I'm looking at an email on international travel. I'm trying to arrange a one day meeting in an EU country. I need to fill in at least four forms, get authorisation from a very senior leader, read multiple policy documents… […] I could be doing actual detective work right now.” (Constable, 43, male)
• “Remove politics from Policing.” (Chief inspector, 45, male)
• “Stop politicising police and back your officers.” (Constable, 46, male)
• “The way the media report on the police leading to very negative public perception. It is completely demoralising and stirs up hatred towards the majority of officers who are just trying to do their best in difficult circumstances.” (Constable, 46, female)

Additionally, officers frequently mention the importance of supporting officer wellbeing and morale, advocating for leaders who are more connected to the realities of frontline work and creating an environment where police can focus on serving the public. These perspectives reflect deep concerns about being able to effectively fulfil core policing duties in a challenging operational landscape.

• “The leadership - the chief constables and their teams are all in it for themselves.” (Chief inspector, 51, female)
• “[Senior leadership are] consistently poor, out of touch with reality and those in the frontline.” (Constable, 37, female)
• “Warranted officers need to walk the beat again and do the nice policing as well the hard part. Would change the public and police perception.” (Inspector, 47, male)
• “Morale is low and without that everything else around fails.” (Constable, 32, female)
• “More protection for officers making genuine mistakes with good intentions. It would immensely help with the morale and retention of officers.” (Sergeant, 35, male)
• “More focus on welfare of officers and not just being treated as a 'number'.” (Constable, 29, female)

Lack of visibility is a major public criticism of the police, and one which police officers share. Seven in ten police officers (71%) say they spend too much time doing admin and desk work, while 50% say they spend too little time in the community and 44% feel they do not patrol their local area enough.

When accounting for the fact that many officers say these latter two aspects are not a central part of their role, this actually represents the vast majority of officers who would expect to spend any time in the community.

How do police feel about senior leadership?

With our poll of the general public showing that senior police figures are less trusted by Britons than ordinary officers, our poll of the police themselves tells a similar story.

Only 41% of officers feel positive about the performance of senior officers in their force, relative to 54% who think they’re doing a bad job. Chief constables receive a better approval rating, at 51%, although 39% still think they’re doing badly.

By contrast, the vast majority of officers (94%) believe fellow members of the rank and file are doing a good job, with a similarly high proportion saying the same of police support staff (86%).

Wider police staff are more positive towards senior ranks than officers are, with 74% believing their chief constable is doing a good job and 65% saying so of other senior officers on their force.

In areas with a Police and Crime Commissioner, just 13% of officers and 27% of civilian staff believe their PCC is doing a good job.

Do police staff feel supported in their role?

A perceived lack of support from above is likely key to why so many police feel higher ranking officers are not doing a good job.

While nearly all police officers (95%) feel supported by their immediate team, just four in ten (41%) feel supported by their chief constable, with only a third (34%) feeling similarly about senior officers.

But such levels of support from senior leadership are relatively positive compared to the government, which a mere 7% of officers feel even fairly supported by. This compares to 92% believing they receive little to no support from the government, including 56% who feel they receive no support at all.

Again, non-frontline staff are more positive about those above them in the hierarchy, with 56% feeling supported by their chief constable, 47% by senior officers and 17% by the UK government.

Police don’t just feel a lack of support from the top brass, with a widespread feeling among officers that the force is misrepresented by the media and the public.

Around nine in ten police officers (89-90%) feel the force is portrayed inaccurately in news reports and in fictional films and TV programmes, as well as among the public themselves, while nearly all (95%) believe their portrayal on social media is wide of the mark.

One officer told us “The way the media report on the police [leads] to very negative public perception” and that this is “completely demoralising and stirs up hatred towards the majority of officers who are just trying to do their best in difficult circumstances”.

Despite this, just 22% of police officers say their interactions with the public are generally negative, with 38% saying they’re usually positive and 36% saying they’re equally positive and negative.

Police support the use of AI in policing

With police feeling overworked and under supported, one particular development that could make a big difference in coming years is artificial intelligence (AI). There is significant enthusiasm among police officers for the employment of AI on specific tasks we asked about, with 82-88% backing its use for live facial recognition, data analysis and crime mapping.

While support is a lower 56% when it comes to our more generic question on AI use in the police day-to-day functions, this is nonetheless greater than the 32% of police officers opposed.

Around a third of police officers (31%) already say AI has been more of help than a hindrance to their job, roughly double the 16% who say it’s more of a hindrance than a help. Just 33% of police officers say they do not currently interact with AI in their role – notably lower than the number among the wider public.

What do police think about structural reforms?

Earlier this year, home secretary Shabana Mahmood outlined significant reforms to the structure of policing in England and Wales, with new regional police forces replacing the existing largely county-based constabulary model. Police officers are evenly split 46% to 46% on the policy.

They do, however, support the government’s plans to abolish police and crime commissioners from 2028, with 78% of police officers in favour and just 10% opposed.

See the full results here and here

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Photo: Getty