Alarming rise in assaults on Kent police officers as 24 assaulted in just one week

5 November 2020

The rise in assaults on Kent Police officers is “alarming”, the Federation has said, as it is revealed that 24 Kent officers were assaulted in a single week.

Eight of those officers were assaulted within 24 hours.

Neil Mennie, Chair of Kent Police Federation, said that these figures “bring into focus the dangers that officers face”.

He said: “The figures are alarming and every single one has a story behind it – it’s pretty grim seeing the figures every week.”

Two Kent Police officers recently had a knife pulled on them while they were trying to arrest a man; luckily both officers are fine, but Neil said it highlighted how “situations can change extremely quickly”.

Officers are also facing COVID-related assaults and Neil said that his colleagues had been coughed and spat at.

Speaking to BBC Radio Kent, he said: “COVID adds an additional element at the moment, but actually most of the folks are doing the right thing.”

Neil said that he thought the second lockdown might help officers in some ways. He said: “I think overall it will help us and the public. No matter what your views are, the lockdown represents a simplification, to some extent, of the rules.

“Hopefully when we come out of this lockdown, we can look at being a bit more even-handed on how we apply the rules and legislations to make it easier for both us and the public.”

The recent National Police Chiefs’ Council Safety Review examined the trend of increased assaults against officers and made a raft of recommendations, including overhauling safety training and trialling new technology and tactics. It also looked at the use of Taser, and how forces responded following an assault on an officer.

National Police Chiefs’ Council Chair Martin Hewitt said: “Those risks can never be eliminated completely but, as these changes are implemented, we do expect to see a reduction in the number of assaults and greater satisfaction in the response after an assault.”

Neil said that the Federations would be getting involved to make sure officers had the kit they needed to help them avoid being assaulted. He said: “The Review has come up with a number of recommendations and a board has been set up so that Federations will have a seat, looking at equipment to see how we can improve it”.

Meanwhile the Government has said it is setting tougher maximum sentences – up from 12 months to two years – for those who assault emergency service workers.

Neil supports this, saying: “We’ve definitely seen more changes and more appearances before the court. However, we still see some unfortunate sentences that, from our perspective, do not fit the nature of the crime, and that can be frustrating.

“We want to see a more firm application of the sentences so that people do understand that if they assault or hurt one of our officers, they will face significant consequences”.