UK Policing News

Police Scotland is using patrol cars held together with duct tape and cable ties, according to the organisation representing rank and file officers. Calum Steele, of the Scottish Police Federation (SPF), also said interview suites for sex assault victims were damp and had mouldy carpets. He said decades of under-investment had left a "crumbling police estate". Justice Secretary Michael Matheson acknowledged the lack of funding but said an "estate plan" was now in place. Police Scotland's corporate services director, David Page, also acknowledged it operated under "budgetary pressures". Mr Steele, SPF general secr…

As part of plans to transform the organisation, the Metropolitan Police Service has decided to phase out two of its eleven ranks by summer 2018. The rank of Commander will not appear in the new leadership model, and the Met will also move to a single inspecting rank, removing the position of Chief Inspector. By reducing the layers of hierarchy, officers will be given more freedom to make decisions and spend less time briefing upwards and waiting for decisions to come down the chain of command. A pilot, which has been running in Westminster, has already shown that streamlining leadership can lead to more effective decision-making. This change is part of a major program…

I was flicking through my local Fed magazine last week and read an article about the latest 1% pay rise. What struck me was a comment that although the CCs had supported the pay rise they didn't want it to contribute to pensionable pay! That struck me as being very tight fisted and showing a distinct lack of support for their front line officers. This comes on top of people like BHH proposing that all bank holidays apart from Christmas being done away with in lieu of extra holidays, which effectively would mean a pay cut for those officers willing to work them. Neither proposal was brought in but the fact that they were proposed and discussed shows a lack of empathy a…

Scotland Yard considers probe into IPCC police misconduct allegations Danny Shaw Home affairs correspondent 08 October 2016 UK New Scotland Yard sign Scotland Yard is considering whether to launch a criminal investigation into claims the Independent Police Complaints Commission deliberately suppressed evidence during an inquiry into alleged police misconduct. Three police officers were cleared at a misconduct hearing in July and have lodged a criminal complaint with the Met about the conduct of the IPCC. Scotland Yard said it was "assessing" information relating to "two linked allegations of crime". The IPCC said it w…

I have been a neighbourhood PC for four years, in a police force savaged by cuts. I’ve just been told that I will have to reapply for my job because my patch is being combined with the next. If I keep my job, I’ve been told to prepare for less response officers and more working alone – known as single crewing. amp.theguardian.com https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/public-leaders-network/2016/oct/15/neighbourhood-police-force-struggling-cuts-single-crewing-fight-crime%3f0p19G=e?client=ms-android-orange-gb An interesting but depressing blog, which I'm sure many on here can relate too

Image copyrightWEST YORKSHIRE POLICE Image captionThe police Land Rover was parked on Royd Villas overnight in Hebden Bridge when it was spray-painted A police Land Rover has been spray-painted silver by vandals. The vehicle was targeted between 21:30 BST on Monday and 04:45 on Tuesday in Hebden Bridge, West Yorkshire. Insp John Simpson said while some "might find this funny" the vehicle would "be off the road whilst it is repaired at a cost". He added: "It is a specialist vehicle used to access the more rural areas of Calderdale and as such is an essential vehicle for the local communities." The force said it did not have a dedicated car park for …

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