1 May 2025

Federation reveals results of 2024 pay and morale survey

81% of Dorset Police officers feel ‘worse off’ financially now than they were five years ago and 18% ‘never’ or ‘almost never’ have enough money to cover all their essentials.

According to the 2024 Police Federation of England and Wales Pay and Morale Report – published today - 85% of respondents have seen living cost increases in the previous month and 69% of officers are dissatisfied with their pay.

Worryingly, 26% of Dorset Police officers who responded to the survey said they intend to resign from the police service either ‘within the next two years’ or ‘as soon as [they] can’.

Whilst Police Officers received a 4.75% pay rise in 2024, officer pay has reduced by a fifth since 2010.

Nationally 76% of officers responding to the PFEW Pay and Morale survey say their pay does not reflect the dangers they face and a third of officers struggle to afford essentials such as food, rent, or heating.

Officers are also struggling with low morale and lack of support, the survey found. 94% of Dorset officers said they do not feel respected by the Government, and 58% said they were experiencing low morale.

79% of respondents from Dorset Police said that they would not recommend joining the police to others. 79% said they do not feel valued within the service.

Officers are coming under attack from the public too, the report showed, with 15% having suffered one or more injuries that required medical attention as a result of work-related violence in the last year.

Only 25% of officers who responded reported having access to double crewing at all times whilst on duty.

56% of respondents from Dorset Police said that over the last 12 months, their workload has been ‘too high’ or ‘much too high’. 3% of officers said that they have ‘never’ or ‘rarely’ been able to take an 11-hour break between shifts in the last 12 months and 32% said they feel ‘always’ or ‘often’ feel pressured into working long hours.

Sadly, 85% of respondents from Dorset Police indicated that they had experienced feelings of stress, low mood, anxiety, or other difficulties with their health and wellbeing over the last 12 months, and 45% said that they find their job ‘very’ or ‘extremely’ stressful.

The survey is based on 259 responses received from Dorset Police officers.