Our CEO Chief Constable Sir Andy Marsh responds to the government white paper on police reform
Our response to government's police reform proposals
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Today the government announced a wide range of proposed changes to policing as part of its white paper on police reform, 'From local to national: a new model for policing’.
The white paper proposes the creation of a new National Police Service (NPS), which would bring together existing national bodies, including the College of Policing, the National Crime Agency (NCA) and Counter Terrorism Policing (CTP), into a single organisation.
Chief Constable Sir Andy Marsh:
I’ve been a police officer for almost 40 years. Indeed, almost my whole adult life.
I understand that as a police officer, you will want to do your very best to serve the public and make a difference. And on the other hand, in a job that is rightly heavily scrutinised, heavily overseen, you’ll be concerned about the level of scrutiny that’s applied to you and whether it’s fair.
I’m confident a licence to practise will help on both accounts. Whether you’re a victim of crime in Cumbria or Cornwall, whatever the crime type, whatever the incident, you should expect the same level of service. And you should expect the person dealing with you, the police officer, to be properly trained to do it. It will help you do your best for the public.
On the other hand, what happens when something goes wrong? And even sometimes when you’re applying the best intent, to the best of your ability, things will still go wrong.
Well, if you have a licence to practise as your professional shield, and you’re following your training, you’re following your guidance, you should expect the organisation to support you.
I’m confident that a licence to practise will help our quality of service, help us make a difference, but also will help give you the support you need to do the right thing on a difficult day.
The reforms include the introduction of a requirement for a licence to practise for all police officers, which will support those on the frontline by ensuring they get the right training and support regardless of where in the country they work.
Responding to the white paper, Chief Constable Sir Andy Marsh, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the College of Policing, said:
Policing is one of the most dangerous jobs you can do, and officers put themselves in harm’s way every day managing life-and-death situations.
The College of Policing supports officers who followed our guidance and training and later come under scrutiny. A licence to practise provides officers with an even stronger defence if they follow the robust standards set for them.
In no other profession would we expect those doing the job to be trained without a licence which ensures they are given the most robust training and support available.
The most trusted public professions in the UK already have some form of licensing so that the public know who they are dealing with and what standards to expect. The inclusion of a licence to practise for policing gives reassurance to the public and the service that they can be confident officers are highly trained and fit to serve.
The College of Policing already issues licences in the area of firearms where officers receive world-class training and have been rightly praised for preventing the loss of life, most notably during terror attacks.
This is a welcome measure by the government which recognises the excellence officers perform at and reassures the public that they will receive a consistent level of service regardless of where they live.”
