Federation reveals results of 2024 pay and morale survey

1 May 2025

75% of Kent Police officers feel ‘worse off’ financially now than they were five years ago and 14% ‘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 - 86% of respondents have seen living cost increases in the previous month and 58% of officers are dissatisfied with their pay.

Worryingly, 17% of Kent 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. 91% of Kent officers said they do not feel respected by the Government, and 54% said they were experiencing low morale.

70% of respondents from Kent Police said that they would not recommend joining the police to others. 65% said they do not feel valued within the service.

Neil Mennie, Chair of Kent Police Federation, said: “Although Kent is marginally better than some other forces, we still have officers struggling, with mental health, struggling with workload and potentially thinking about leaving the organisation - which is and continues to be a real concern.

“Our officers are overworked, underpaid and under threat while their real income continues to shrink. We have officers using food banks, struggling with mental health, and feeling forced to leave the job they love.

“Police Officers put up with more than most but too many have just Copped Enough. Without urgent action to restore fair pay and protect welfare, we face a dangerous loss of experience and a direct threat to the safety of our communities." 

Officers are coming under attack from the public too, the report showed, with 16% having suffered one or more injuries that required medical attention as a result of work-related violence in the last year.

Only 23% of officers who responded reported having access to double crewing at all times whilst on duty.

59% of respondents from Kent Police said that over the last 12 months, their workload has been ‘too high’ or ‘much too high’. 4% 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 27% said they feel ‘always’ or ‘often’ feel pressured into working long hours.

Sadly, 83% of respondents from Kent 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 1140 responses received from Kent Police officers.