Custody is seen as ‘punishment posting’

CUSTODY is “seen as a punishment posting”, with many officers in the post wanting to be redeployed “as soon as possible”, a new survey has shown.

Nearly one in five custody officers say they would like to leave detention duties (19%) and nearly three-quarters of officers in other roles say they would never want to work in custody (73%).

These survey results back up the long-held view that custody is still perceived as a ‘punishment posting’ by many, according to the Police Federation of England and Wales, which carried out the research. By comparison, less than 2% of firearms officers want to switch jobs.

The current-day custody climate is revealed in the annual pay and morale survey, which included custody-specific questions for the first time. More than 30,000 officers, equivalent to 25% of all federated ranks, took part.

Andy Ward, Police Federation Deputy General Secretary and custody lead, said: “Custody is one of the most challenging areas of policing with potentially serious ramifications if anything goes wrong. The responsibility is enormous in trying to look after detainees’ rights and welfare as well as managing complex risks to ensure their safety and security.

“There are also additional risks where those being detained are vulnerable, for instance through alcohol or drug impairment or dependency, or where suffering will mental ill-health. We have said repeatedly that police cells are not the right place for those with mental health issues, but budget cuts across the NHS and local authorities still mean that too often the police service has to step in when individuals are in crisis and need a place of safety.”

More than 60% of custody officers said they had low personal morale, the survey showed, and 59% reported their workload was too high. A total of 62% of custody officers said that their workload had increased in the past 12 months while 11% of custody officers intend to leave the police within the next two years.