Welsh lead gives cautious welcome to pay award

22 July 2022

Police Federation Welsh lead Nicky Ryan has given an “extremely cautious” welcome to a pay settlement that gives officers a £1,900 rise from September.

The award, which is in line with the recommendations of the Police Remuneration Review Body (PRRB), works out at an average of five per cent but targets officers on the lowest salaries who will get an 8.8 per cent rise.

Higher earning officers will receive more modest increases of between 0.6 per cent and 1.8 per cent under the settlement.

The Police Constable Degree Apprentice minimum starting salary is going up to £23,556.

Speaking on BBC Radio Wales, Nicky said: “I think it would be fair to say that the pay award is a step in the right direction but we have to be absolutely clear on this - there is still a long, long way to go.

“If you put this against the backdrop of last year, policing was one of the few, if not the only, public sector organisations that had a zero per cent pay rise so the cost of living crisis has really hit our members, especially those on the lowest pay scales.

“So we welcome this, but we welcome it with extreme caution.”

Nicky said younger police constables in the Welsh forces could expect a “significant pay rise” as a result of the settlement but pointed out some officers had been struggling on low pay.

She said: “The Police Remuneration Review Body (PRRB) has recommended that the lowest pay point, which was a little over £19,000, is actually removed so this takes our student officers to just over £23,000.

“But to put some perspective on that, that lowest pay point actually paid officers £9.21 per hour so if you compare that to the national minimum wage of £9.50 an hour it was a pretty shocking state of affairs.”

Nicky also warned that senior colleagues could feel short-changed by the way the settlement had been formulated.

“We accept this is a step in the right direction,” she said, “This is an average pay award so the lowest paid of our members will obviously receive a higher percentage pay rise compared to those more highly paid.

“So, while this might help to recruit more officers, we have to appreciate those with longer service, the more experienced officers and those with supervisory responsibilities, are still not being rewarded for the job they are undertaking and for the stresses and responsibilities of that role.

“The Government really needs to show its hand and support my brave, hard-working colleagues if it wants a police force that the UK can be proud of.”

Home Secretary Priti Patel said the pay awards reflected the vital contributions public sector workers make and the cost of living pressures facing households.

She said: “I am pleased to be able to accept the pay review body recommendations in full so that all police officers see a £1,900 salary uplift.

“It is right that we recognise the extraordinary work of our officers who day in, day out, work tirelessly to keep our streets, communities and country safe.”

Police Federation national chair Steve Hartshorn described the Government’s pay award as a “small first step” in repairing relationships between ministers and police officers.

He said: “After our persistent appeals, the Government is finally starting to listen to the huge concerns we have over low police pay.”