Retention of officers is a ‘significant issue’ in Force

13 January 2023

A Hertfordshire Police Federation rep has warned the Force faces a serious officer retention crisis after a report found almost one in four officers wanted to quit the Force within the next two years.

The Police Federation’s 2022 pay and morale survey found 23 per cent of Hertfordshire officers wanted to leave in the next two years or as soon as possible with morale, pay and the impact of the job on their mental health and wellbeing the most common factors behind their decision.

And James Stopford, a sergeant based at Watford who supports new students joining under the Policing Education Qualifications Framework (PEQF) scheme, said the figures were a major cause for concern as officers were increasingly seeking career opportunities with other forces or outside the police service.

He said: “I think if you look at all the hard work that has gone into the uplift programme and recruitment in  recent years, one of the biggest things to come out of the latest pay and morale survey is the retention of those new officers.

“It is a significant problem in Hertfordshire and it is quite easy to understand why although it sometimes feels like we are banging our heads against a brick wall to try and prove it.

“Hertfordshire is among the most expensive places to live in the country outside certain areas of London and this can make life extremely difficult for young police officers. This is not a new thing and it was the same when I was a student officer but it is a real problem.”

James said new recruits often lived at home with their parents when they embarked on their careers but soon found themselves struggling to make ends meet when they tried to begin the next stage of their lives.

“You want to move out and move on with your life but you might as well look at a map with a big X through the middle of Hertfordshire because it is so expensive and that has a huge impact on officer retention in our Force,” explained James.

“I work with student officers and most of them are getting on well and we are putting all these processes in place.

“We haven't actually seen any early resignations from our probationary officers but losing them to other forces after putting that investment into them is a concern.

“People have to start moving further afield and if they have a 40-minute drive or train journey to get to work they start to think about spending another 10 minutes commuting into London, working for the Met and taking home an extra six grand a year.

“And I think right now money is as big an influencer as anything else in terms of the cost of living crisis. Money talks when people are deciding to do what’s best for them and their families.”

The survey found 78 per cent of respondents were dissatisfied or very dissatisfied with their overall remuneration including basic pay and allowances, 98 per cent reported that their cost of living had increased in the last month, 83 per cent felt financially worse off than they were five years ago and 22 never or almost never have enough money to cover all their essentials.

The Police Federation received 824 responses from Hertfordshire Police Federation members, representing a response rate of around 37 per cent.