Hands Off Our Rest Days

9 April 2026

“Protected rest time is not a luxury, it is essential for officer wellbeing and for effective policing”, the Chair of Cumbria Police Federation has said, as the national Federation launches the campaign ‘Hands Off Our Rest Days’.

The campaign is a response to proposals from police chiefs that would weaken protections around police officers’ rest days.

Officers are currently entitled to a minimum four hours’ compensation at time and a half when they are required to work on a cancelled rest day, recognising the disruption to protected rest and family commitments.

In its submission to the Police Remuneration Review Body, the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) has proposed to remove that safeguard, with officers paid at time and one-third, calculated in 15-minute increments, for the exact time worked. The submission also seeks to tighten the rules around how cancelled rest days are re-rostered.

The Police Federation of England and Wales has launched ‘Hands Off Our Rest Days’ as part of its wider Copped Enough campaign for better pay, working conditions and support for police officers.

Cumbria Police Federation Chair Ed Russell said: “This suggestion by the National Police Chiefs’ Council to erode the terms and conditions of hard-working officers up and down the country while in the middle of a national retention crisis in policing is extremely ill advised.

“One of the most cited reasons for officers leaving policing nationally is the poor work-life balance. Current regulations provide officers with protection and fair remuneration when required to work their days off at short notice – this encourages forces to plan better and ensures that there is real disincentive to disrupting officers’ private lives.”

Ed said that Cumbria Police Federation met regularly with Chief Constable Darren Martland to discuss these issues. He added: “We are pleased that there has been a marked reduction in cancelled rest days across the force as a result.”

Ed continued: “It should always be the case that these disruptions are minimised, and more can always be done to protect officers’ much-needed down time while balancing the needs of public safety.

“As it stands, officers can have their rest days cancelled at a moment's notice; have their leave taken from them due to operational necessity; and can be required to work extended tours of duty at any time, missing time with their families and planned events.

“A move to lessen the protections introduced to prevent these powers being abused shows a frightening disregard for officer welfare. Officers have copped enough. Protected rest time is not a luxury, it is essential for officer wellbeing and for effective policing.”

Officers are encouraged to join the virtual picket line at: https://polfed.org/campaigns/copped-enough/