Chair praises public spirit of officers

24 June 2021

Suffolk Police Federation chair Darren Harris praised the ‘fantastic public spirit’ of police officers as new figures reveal almost nine in 10 have done volunteer work or fund-raising during the pandemic.

Research carried out by civil service and public sector membership club Boundless for Public Service Day (23 June) shows that 88 per cent of officers found time to give something back during the Covid-19 crisis.

Officers who responded were also found to have raised £13,817 per person for charity during the course of their career.

Darren said: “These figures are amazing and underline the fantastic public spirit of officers and should make us all proud to be part of the police service.

“It’s uplifting to know that while officers have been working tirelessly on the frontline of this pandemic, so many of our colleagues have been giving back to their communities, to charities and to individuals.

“On Public Service Day, I’d like to say a huge thank you to them all,” Darren added.

Public Service Day was launched by the UN in 2003 to celebrate our public services and the people working in them.

John Apter, chair of the Police Federation of England and Wales (PFEW), said: “This is fantastic to see but doesn’t come as a surprise to me.

“Police officers and staff are by their very nature decent caring people, and I personally know many who support great initiatives in their spare time.

“Police officers are humble people who do not really want to have the spotlight shone on them.

“However, I think it is really important we celebrate our colleagues and the difference they make to society both on and off duty.”

The research was conducted for Boundless by Opinion Matters, and involved 2,048 employed respondents.

The main voluntary activities supported by police officers and service employees during the pandemic included: