Recruitment drive proves a success

4 May 2021

Humberside Police Federation secretary Rob Grunner says the Force has made “a brilliant start” to its three-year recruitment drive after new Government figures showed it was ahead of target.

According to new Home Office data, Humberside Police has an extra 154 officers after the first full year of the Government’s three-year Police Uplift Programme, which aims to increase the number of police in England and Wales by 20,000.

It’s almost 60 per cent more than the Force’s first year allocation of 97 officers, and means there are now 2,083 officers serving the Humberside Force area.

“The Force has made a brilliant start to its three-year recruitment campaign against the backdrop of the pandemic and all the challenges it’s brought,” said Rob.

“It’s really pleasing to see it ahead of schedule in its recruitment, which translates to more officers on the ground and more support for our members.

“It’s making a difference to our members during what’s been challenging period of not only policing the pandemic but also carrying out the day-to-day policing that our communities expect.”

Rob said the Force now faced the challenge of retaining after Home Office figures showed Humberside Police has recruited 275 new officers since the programme was launched.

“Officers will of course retire but we need to ensure we’re doing all we can to retain our recruits and our experienced officers as we move into the next stage of the campaign,” Rob added.

Nationally, the Home Office figures show there were 137,704 officers in the 43 territorial police forces in England and Wales as at 31 March – an increase of 8,771 officers.

Meanwhile, forces are being encouraged to use new tax breaks to recruit more officers from military backgrounds.

Companies and public sector organisations which employ armed forces veterans are now exempt from paying National Insurance contributions during the first 12 months of their employment.

This new tax relief came into force on 6 April and is available to every employer - regardless of when a veteran left the regular armed forces. 

National chair of the Police Federation of England and Wales John Apter said: “This is good news and shows the Government recognises the value and contribution veterans can bring through their life experiences and strong transferable skills.

“As part of our current national recruitment campaign, forces need to grab this opportunity with both hands and do all they can to recruit people with life experience, and this includes ex-military who can contribute so much to policing.”