Branch supports multi-year police pay rise plan

9 March 2026

Dyfed Police Federation chair Delme Rees says a multi-year pay increase is vital to improve morale, retention, and operational capability.

Delme has backed calls by the Police Federation of England and Wales for a seven per cent pay award in each of the next three years.

He said it was a crucial step in restoring police pay after a decade of decline in police officer real-term wages.

Delme said: “For more than a decade our members have seen their pay eroded in real-terms by 20 per cent, while the demands placed upon them have increased.

“They are working tirelessly to keep our communities safe, facing more complex investigations, and dealing with increasing levels of violence against them.

Pay rise

“In short they are expected to do more for less, which understandably leaves them feeling undervalued.

“The Government can improve morale and ease the crisis in recruitment and retention by accepting PFEW’s submission and awarding uplift a pay that reflects the realities of frontline policing.”

Delme expressed concern over the Government’s remit letter to the PRRB, which makes clear that recommendations must reflect affordability within existing funding settlements.

The National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC), meanwhile, indicated it would support a 3.5 per cent award only if fully funded, falling to 2.5 per cent if it is not.

Delme said: “We cannot continue to demand more from police officers while reducing the value of the job in real terms.

Trauma

“That has been the approach for the past decade and it’s damaging morale and driving talented, experienced officers away from policing.”

Alongside its pay claim, PFEW is calling for structural reform of police remuneration, including the introduction of a military-style ‘P Factor’ to recognise the unique risks, restrictions and psychological trauma within policing.

The evidence submitted to PRRB shows:

• Almost half of constables have five years’ service or less

• Record levels of mental health-related sickness absence, and

• Persistently high numbers of assaults on officers.

Delme said: “Officers accept restrictions on their private lives, face traumatic incidents as a matter of routine, and put themselves in harm’s way to protect the public.

“A fair pay award, alongside meaningful reform of how police remuneration is structured, would send a clear message that the service and the sacrifices of our members is properly valued.”

PFEW national secretary John Partington added: “Officers will be putting their health and their lives on the line this weekend knowing their chiefs are recommending what is in effect a real-terms pay cut.

“Chief constables should be honest with the people they are supposed to lead: they are endorsing another reduction in officers’ living standards, one which has obvious and severe consequences.

"You cannot demand more courage, more resilience and more personal risk while steadily reducing the value of the job.

“Brave and dedicated men and women are leaving policing in record numbers because it no longer pays enough to justify the cost to them and their families.”

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