Police wellbeing

Evidence shows that the wellbeing and morale of police officers has declined since 2010. Austerity and cuts to the core police budget have played a role, but there is evidence of other reasons for this. A recent Police Federation survey found that the second most cited reason for poor morale was ‘the management of change within the police’. Officers mentioned this more often than concerns about pay or workloads.

This project has looked at what policing can learn from research and good practice in Organisational Development so that the wellbeing of officers is promoted.

Project aims

• Review the theories of Organisational Development and explain their relevance to today’s policing challenges.
• Draw out lessons on wellbeing by looking at other sectors such as healthcare and the armed forces.
• Assess emerging cases of best practice in police forces across the UK.
• Provide recommendations on how forces and national policing bodies can introduce change programmes to promote wellbeing.
• Promote further discussion of Organisational Development and its benefits for policing.