AN INCREASE in maternity pay allowance will make a “huge difference to officers”, Hampshire Police Federation has said. From 4 January 2021, officers on maternity or adoption leave will be entitled to full pay for 26 weeks – this is an increase from the current rate of 18 weeks. Hampshire Police Federation Chair Zoë Wakefield […]
Category: News
Home Ownership Hopes Fade For Officers
YOUNG police officers are becoming increasingly unlikely to buy their own home, which is a “constant concern” for officers in Hampshire who live in one of the most expensive areas in the country. A new report into starter homes has warned that home ownership hopes are fading for young police officers. The report by the […]
Local Investigations Quicker Than IOPC
INVESTIGATIONS into officer conduct are quicker when carried out local level than under IOPC supervision, new figures have shown. Supervised cases took on average around 24 months to be resolved – compared to just five months for unsupervised cases, according to the IOPC’s own figures. Just 13 supervised investigations took place compared to nearly 20,000 […]
Long Inquiries Causing Stress And Anxiety
INVESTIGATIONS into officer conduct are still taking too long to resolve, as new figures show that enquiries are quicker when carried out at a local level than under IOPC supervision. The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) found that from April 2019 to January 2020, internal investigations into complaints against officers supervised by the IOPC […]
Pay Freeze Is Unfair On Hard-Working Officers
THE Government’s public sector pay freeze is “taking money from the people who have sacrificed the most and been at the most risk during the pandemic”. Hampshire Police Federation Chair Zoë Wakefield was reacting to the announcement by Chancellor Rishi Sunak that all non-NHS public sector pay would be frozen next year. Although those earning […]
COVID Rules ‘Challenging’ To Enforce
AS England heads back into a three-tier system next week, the Chair of Hampshire Police Federation has urged the Government to simplify the COVID guidelines and “make it much easier for the public to understand, which then makes it easier for us to police it”. The lockdown in England ends on 2 December, after which the […]
Police Officers Are Not Trying To Ruin Christmas
“WE don’t want to ruin anyone’s Christmas. We just urge everybody to stick to the guidelines so that they don’t get a visit from us, because the last thing we want to be doing is going round everyone’s houses on Christmas Day.” That’s the message from Hampshire Police Federation Chair Zoë Wakefield, who said that […]
Officers Must Be Vigilant In Wearing PPE
POLICE officers need to continue to wear PPE because they are in a “higher-risk occupation”, Hampshire Police Federation has said. New figures have revealed that more than 800 UK police officers have tested positive for COVID-19 this year. Hampshire Police Federation Chair Zoë Wakefield said: “It’s definitely an issue and during this second spike we’ve […]
Social Media Clips Distort View Of Police
THE rise in members of the public posting out-of-context clips of police interactions on social media is “completely unfair” and gives a “distorted” view of what happened, according to Hampshire Police Federation. Chair Zoë Wakefield said forces should be able to release officers’ body-worn video where legally possible, to show a fuller picture. She explained: […]
Operation Hampshire Rolled Out Nationwide
ALL police officers and staff should get the support and justice they deserve after they have been assaulted, whichever force they represent. That’s the goal of Chief Inspector Dave Brewster, who has led the Metropolitan Police’s Operation Hampshire programme since 2016 and is now joining the College of Policing to help all officers in England […]