Have your say on police uniform

4 July 2024

West Midlands Police Federation members are being given the chance to have their say on the uniform cops wear.

The Police Federation of England and Wales (PFEW) has launched a National Police Uniform and Equipment Survey in collaboration with researchers at Lancaster University.

The survey will explore a range of issues from whether the uniform is fit for purpose to whether it’s comfortable, from whether it affects your health to how it makes officers feel.

Branch board member Martin Bonser, who is on the Federation’s health and safety committee, said: “We know that the fit, finish, and comfort of uniform is an issue for some of our members – and this is a chance for them to have their say.

“This new survey is the first time members have been able to give their view on the uniform they wear every day, and the results will feed into future decision-making about design, usability and safety.

Home Office

“We want to give decision-makers a complete picture of the issues facing our members and would encourage as many as possible to take the survey.”

The survey is live now and closes on 12 August.

It has had input from the National Police Chiefs’ Council, the Police Superintendents’ Association, UNISON and the Home Office.

Zac Mader, the Federation’s Welsh co-lead, is leading on the project with fellow National Board member and PFEW wellbeing lead Belinda Goodwin.

Zac echoed Martin’s call for as many members as possible to complete the survey.

He said: “This is the first opportunity our members have had to tell us and the police service how they feel about their uniform.

“Every day, in every station, there’s likely to be a conversation about uniform, whether it’s good, bad or indifferent.

“Our survey focuses on issues around uniform and interoperability with equipment and PPE.

“Is the uniform fit for purpose? How does it make people feel wearing it? Does it make you feel proud to be a police officer?

“This is a great opportunity for our members to have their say on what they think about their uniform and what they want from it, and we’d encourage as many as possible to complete it.

Uniform policies

“We’ll use the results to give decision makers evidence of what our members want so that meaningful changes are made to the uniform and uniform policies.”

Zac said he hoped the work would improve the quality of uniforms, and even save Forces money in the long run.

“It appears to be a postcode lottery at the moment,” he said.

“There isn’t one route to buying uniform, which means potentially different standards of uniform across the service.

“We want consistency with police uniform, with the highest minimum standards and to get rid of the postcode lottery.

“We want a uniform that is environmentally friendly and that has been ethically sourced.

“And we believe that there are future opportunities with procurement of uniform and buying power."

The link to the survey has been sent to members' inboxes. If you have any queries, please contact impactofuniform@gmail.com or the PFEW research team on researchanddatacollection@polfed.org