Fed member considering new job following continuous court issues

5 July 2023

A West Midlands Police Federation member has told how looking for a new job might be the only solution, having felt forced to choose between attending court and looking after his five-month-old poorly baby.

Father-of-two Paul Ward is urging the system to change, saying the ‘private life of officers is not respected’, as he tells how the number of block court bookings is becoming increasingly difficult to manage or plan for.

Paul’s comments come after he was asked to appear as a witness in court, instead of caring for his five-month-old daughter, who has had a number of health issues. These included a trip to hospital with tonsillitis, where it was eventually discovered she also had covid and a chest infection, both of which required antibiotics.

“I had a court warning confirmed the day before I was meant to be there, having been on reserve for months,” explained 36-year-old Paul, who has been in the Force for 17 years.

“I had been on standby for this possibility for days, not knowing if or when I would be required, or if it would be adjourned at the last minute. My daughter and wife's [who also had the chest infection] health declined and I needed to be at home. I tried to manage this with my supervision but felt torn between my job and the family. And I don’t think that’s an uncommon feeling.

“I feel the balance is not right when it comes to attending court, regardless of what’s going on in our personal lives. When I was unable to attend court because of my daughter being ill, I felt scrutinised for this decision. In comparison, the three-week court warnings, which are more and more frequent, appear to go unquestioned.

Father-of-two Paul Ward is urging the system to change.

“We are on standby for weeks and can be cancelled last minute. When I attended court, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) were aware the case was only going to be a one-day trial and had known for months, but I was unable to plan for three weeks.

“Another case was adjourned 24 hours before, but I was unable to book leave for the three weeks I had originally been warned for. This is a common problem for officers. The issue is exacerbated by leave embargos and cancelled rest days.

“It feels like I’m constantly fighting for a private life. This is having a huge impact on me and my love for the job.

Paul said he worries about pre-booking family breaks, revealing it has become ‘very difficult’ to plan anything in the six-week summer holidays.

“I actually worry about booking annual leave now,” said Paul.

“With each court hearing, you have three weeks blocked out - and sometimes, you get two cases taking place at the same time. So all it would take is for us to get a couple of court hearings over the summer and that would mean any time away with my family over the holidays would not be able to happen."

He said that he feels police officers are constantly ‘at the bottom of the priority list’, and ‘the last to know if cases are adjourned’.

“It feels like there’s just a general lack of courtesy. It’s like our lives are on stand-by, just in case we get called to court,” he added.

“I know it’s not always a simple process but every time, officers are pushed to the bottom of the pile.”

“The issues around block booking for court appearances is impacting me, operationally, professionally and is significantly affecting my wellbeing. Because of the job, I won’t be able to enjoy my summer and that’s not right.

“The sad thing is, I still have the fire in my belly to do this job. I’m still passionate about policing, I just don’t know how much longer I can be in a role where I feel so disrespected.”