THE vast majority of police in Gloucestershire feel that they are not paid fairly for the stresses and strains they face and feel that there is low morale in the force.

This comes after the Pay and Morale Survey, conducted by the Police Federation, which is the union for those in the force, is published.

It showed that of those who responded to the survey, 81.5 per cent feel they aren’t paid fairly and 91.9 per cent feel there is low morale throughout the force.

There were some other starling results, such as 63.5 per cent feel that they are worse off financially, 68 per cent wouldn’t recommend joining the police, and 69.8 per cent saying their workload has increased within the last 12 months.

Furthermore, 10.5 per cent stated their intent to quit the police force within the next two years.

The chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales (PFEW), Steve White, said that officers are having to sacrifice their own personal welfare while their pay and resources continue to be cut.

“Officers do a heroic job as evidenced by the events of the past year, yet they feel undervalued and under pressure,” he said.

“We know that officers enjoy tremendous support from the British public as a whole, which is a source of enormous pride for them.

“But something has to give, and unfortunately the evidence shows that it is these officers’ personal welfare, as they struggle to meet rising demand with dwindling resources and 21,000 officers fewer than 2010.

“At a time when we have never needed the police more, with heightened threats almost weekly, we have many officers who are finding it hard to put food on the table for their families and are resorting to welfare schemes.

“In real terms, pay has dropped by around 15 per cent since 2010.

“If the pay cap was to continue for another four years, that would represent a 23 per cent overall drop. No wonder officers are demoralised and despondent.”

“The survey is an important source of evidence to help understand the impact that changes in pay and conditions have on our members.

“Well, the message couldn’t be clearer: Our members are feeling the strain and want to feel valued and be adequately remunerated.

“Every police force, HMIC and the College of Policing must now place greater emphasis on working together to improve police officer morale, welfare and wellbeing before it is too late.”

Gloucestershire’s deputy chief constable Jon Stratford said that there was not much the force could do about the problems, with the impact on staff welfare being forced by government measures such as through pay and pension changes.

He says that a range of welfare measures will be brought in to help tackle the issues shown in the survey.

“As an organisation we would aspire to have higher morale amongst all our staff, police officers and police staff, than this report indicates.

"I think it’s a tough job and police officers are personally feeling under a lot of pressure and that's why we are determined to make sure we do everything we possibly can to make sure they feel well led and feel as though their wellbeing is supported.

"There are some things that happen at a national level such as a net reduction in pay and quite significant changes to our pension schemes, both in terms of the schemes themselves and the way in which they are taxed which means a lot of our officers and staff are worse off than when we were five years ago.

"There’s not much we can do about that, but what we can do is make our officers feel valued, we can make them feel well treated, we can make them feel well led, and we can make them feel taken care of.

"When you look at the report that does paint a picture which is better than the national situation and I think that’s reflective of where the Constabulary is and the area we police.

"For me the headline message is let’s not take our police officers for granted."

Police and Crime Commissioner Martin Surl has encouraged officers to stick with it, as they make an important contribution to the county.

"There is no doubt the police, like everyone in the public sector, are working in very difficult times but I would encourage them to stick with it because they are valued and they make an important contribution to the county.

"What doesn’t help is that the police often take the brunt of criticism for rising crime and disorder when both are influenced by factors outside their control.

"And at a time when resources are stretched, it doesn’t help either when some try to pit the needs of one community against those of another.

"Where the chief constable decides to deploy his officers can be a finely balanced judgement.

"To suggest operational decisions reflect the notion that one part of the county is regarded more or less important than another is both unfair and unhelpful.

"I understand where the Police Federation is coming from but the figures also mean that 90 per cent of officers are planning to carry on and I will do all I can to support them."