CLEVELAND POLICE Employee Reviews

23yrs with the organisation and improving. Sure Cleveland has had bad press and yes we're overwhelmed with demand but still we strive to do our bit to deliver to the public and at the same time support our colleagues. If you're up to the challenge and willing to be part of a solid team then I believe Cleveland offers this. Forget the bad press and credit where it's due, one of the highest crime rates per capita and yet getting on with the job.

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No support or well-being for staff

Police Constable (Current Employee) - Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire - 11 May 2023

Working as a police officer is a fantastic job, but there is just no support or well-being in place for staff. Officers are burnt out and are expected to perform with 100% effort. Attitudes of some supervision is awful and not supportive in the slightest. Such a shame as it is a truly rewarding job. But the cons far outweighs the benefits of the role.

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Insights into CLEVELAND POLICE

Based on 27 survey responses

Areas for improvement

General feeling of work happiness
Energising work tasks
Sense of belonging

Terrible force to work for

Police Officer (Former Employee) - Cleveland - 18 March 2023

Starting in 2020 probably wasn’t the best time to join the police. However, even if it wasn’t for the Covid Pandemic I would say the outcome would be exactly the same which is poor support and terrible training. The initial training (18 weeks) of classroom based learning teaches you nothing and does not prepare you for the real job. The tutor phase is the best part to learn what the job is like however, I feel like it is too short (10 weeks). Then you’re left to your own devices by yourself panicking. Every officer said the same. Working in response for Cleveland is horrendous as you’re expected to respond to jobs whilst also doing mass amounts of paperwork. I expected paperwork, however, the level is just extreme and not realistic/possible. Having to complete full case files and the standard paperwork whilst being run off your feet going job to job to job is ridiculous. Whilst also interviewing and everything else. The amount of burnt out officers they send out to an emergency is frightening. I have never experienced such a horrible time in my life whilst working for a company that simply doesn’t care about your true well-being and thinks of you as just a number. There is no time for work life balance, you literally have no social time and any plans made you most likely have to cancel. I do not recommend working for this force. The one good thing I would say is the teams as they do help any way they can and are there for you to complete any paperwork.

Cons

Long hours, a lot of paperwork, no work life balance.

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Poor management. Great frontline officers but not supported

Police Officer (Current Employee) - Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire - 28 February 2023

Poor managementFrontline staff are what keeps it all together. Poor management and you are purely just a number. Alot of good officers are actively seeking other employment

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Strategically Crippled & Impotent

Police Officer (Current Employee) - Cleveland, North Yorkshire - 23 February 2023

A majority of people work incredibly hard here. The salaries do not reflect the effort and personal investment first line staff and officers put into their day to day business. Unfortunately the constantly rotating executive leadership team seem impotent and powerless to effect change and continuously allow themselves to be hobbled by an utterly incompetent HR department and a Corporate Service team that wields far too much deciding power and far too little capability. It’s embarrassing to see experienced senior officers utterly castrated by a layer of self-serving, flip-flop, bureaucratic corporate dimwits who have never undertaken a single minute of front line policing activity. Executive officers regularly make decisions which HR and Corporate Service civilian staff then neutralise and undermine.

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Awful place to work toxic and corrupt from the top down

forensic tech (Former Employee) - Cleveland, North Yorkshire - 19 January 2023

Awful place to work toxic and corrupt from the top down. The police always protect their own and never look out for the staff. Culture within the force is barbaric and archaic. Don’t work here if you want to be happy. I’m now on antidepressants from working here

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Hard work, but rewarding and challenging

Police Staff Investigator (Former Employee) - Cleveland - 11 January 2023

The level of work varies from day to day, IT systems are changing and extra training is needed.Case files need to be updated as and when information needs to be added.It is a very busy police service.

Pros

Good salary, great team work.

Cons

Insufficient staff car parking.

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Senior managers lack knowledge

Police Officer (Former Employee) - Middlesbrough - 15 December 2022

The rank and file officers who basically keep the wheels turning, are slowly and surely being ground to a pulp. When some new senior officer comes in they want to change the whole idea of policing when in fairness it does not need changing. The effects are felt right across the force. There is very little support for officers even when the senior staff are told about potential warning signs. Definitely then and us.

Pros

No such thing

Cons

Poor support and lack of direction

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Mostly an enjoyable to place to work. Some bad management let the place down.

Police Officer (Former Employee) - Middlesbrough - 17 April 2022

Fair pay, enjoyable job, good colleagues. Can be stressful at times. Worked for some really good managers but also worked for some terrible ones who were only in it for themselves.

Pros

Money

Cons

Work life balance Bad management in it for themselves

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Minimal support, extreme workloads, low morale and under appreciated.

Police Constable (Former Employee) - Hartlepool - 3 January 2022

During my time at Cleveland Police, I struggled very much and received very minimal support from supervisors and the training/development team to actually achieve the goals I needed to, despite explaining several times of the struggles I was having, and having a very difficult home life at the time which was unfortunately impacting my work. Workload was completely unmanageable for most and there is a complete lack of understanding and organisation. I felt like I was more of a problem to my supervision team. So much so, to the point where a supervisor actively pursued a number of malicious allegations against me to get rid of me during my 2 year probationary period. Statistically, this is one of the worst Police forces in the country and this will not change unless they support their staff and stop being so risk adverse to the point of sacking someone maliciously for something where there was no evidence and anyone with a bit of common sense would have seen the truth.

Pros

Rewarding job when successfully helping people.

Cons

Very clicky, Massive workload, very stressful, Criticised for decision making, no real decision making capability, Certain supervisors out for themselves, some malicious supervisors.

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Jobs at CLEVELAND POLICE

See more jobs

Safeguarding Officer (Ref 23-119)

Cleveland

11 days ago

HOLMES Indexer - Historical Investigation Unit (Ref 23-126)

Cleveland

13 days ago

Performance Analyst - OPCC (Ref 23-128)

Cleveland

2 days ago

New Police Recruit - Detective

Cleveland

30+ days ago

Business Support Officer - OPCC (Ref 23-129)

Cleveland

2 days ago

Exciting yet challenging career.

Police Constable (Current Employee) - Redcar, North Yorkshire - 6 September 2020

Being a police officer is a very challenging role. Dealing with vulnerable people on a daily basis can have great personal satisfaction, however this can come with a price to your mental health as you're exposed to such a wide variety of things not normally seen by the public.

Pros

4 days off in-between 6 days on. Good annual pay and potential of a great pension.

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Fast paced environment that doesn't allow breaks

Police Constable (Former Employee) - Middlesbrough - 11 March 2020

The amount of staff either going sick, being placed on restricted duties or actively seeking employment in other police forces is staggering. Supervision can vary from exceptional to awful - Mine were the latter. Having worked in management for a number of years prior, I was shocked. They'd happily see front-line officers work nearly 50 hours in a 4 day shift pattern with roughly 30 minutes break over the same period. Certain front-line officers would happily refuse to go to jobs due to the specific nature of it. They would also wait a few weeks before making contact with the victim of a crime in the hope that they weren't wishing to pursue the complaint anymore, because, ''That job's a crock of s&*t''. I decided that my mental health and integrity were much more important than working for incompetence. Don't get me wrong there are some fantastic individuals that work there whom genuinely care for the job, and if it's what you've always wanted to do then go for it.

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Good

Police Constable (Current Employee) - Stockton-on-Tees, Durham - 9 March 2020

Enjoyed working here. Would recommend any one who wants a fast pace challenge which presents a different one every day to apply to become a police officer.

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Not a great place

United Kingdom (Former Employee) - Cleveland, North Yorkshire - 20 February 2020

Its a place were your face must fit. They are trying to change but have a long way to go. Management are still in a mess and trying to resurrect a collapsing service.

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Fast paced sometimes stresfull.

Detective Constable (Former Employee) - Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire - 11 February 2020

Hard work not fully appreciated by general public. Plenty of opportunities to gain further skills.Can be stressful and upsetting at times but worth the effort to keep law and order and the country safe.

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A rewarding career

Police Sergeant (Former Employee) - Middlesbrough - 16 January 2020

Being a police officer is not an easy option. There are many opportunities to help people, however, there are also times of intense stress and difficulty. You need to be robust, physically and mentally to undertake the role, and you can expect it to interfere with your private life as demands of the job mean you cannot just down tools and go home at the end of your shift if there is still work you need to finish.

Pros

A rewarding and entertaining career.

Cons

Paperwork, paperwork and yet more paperwork...

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Worst place to work

Contable (Former Employee) - Cleveland - 27 November 2019

Poor management, incestuous. Driven by fear and threat. Senior managers are incapable, incompetent, promotion driven. No leadership, junior ranks left to hang and dry

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Face must fit

Police Officer (Former Employee) - Cleveland - 4 October 2019

Nepotism and corruption still rife. Face must fit to get any kind of advance in career . Not good to show that you are proactive in any way. Yes ! The Force has been racist throughout my career although this has always been denied when confronted with these issues

Pros

Some decent people

Cons

Management

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great place to work

Constable (Former Employee) - cleveland - 31 October 2018

As a Police Officer, any internal work is in line with the Official Secrets Act. I cant go into any detail. I CANT GO INTO ANY DETAIl Turn up morning brief all aspects of law professional dead people going home

Pros

great uniform

Cons

long hours

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Challenging and rewarding

Constable / Sergeant (Current Employee) - Stockton-On-Tees - 21 October 2018

Working in here afforded me the opportunity to conduct tasks from safeguarding and investigations to operational management and HR processes. I have been able to exhibit skills in organisation, efficiency, being deadline driven and regularly showing assertiveness, decisiveness and a willingness to take on responsibility.

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Stressful and mentally challenging.

Police Dispatcher / Call Taker (Current Employee) - Middlesbrough - 3 September 2018

Very stressful and mentally challenging. Each day is never the same. Dealing with incidents reported into Police, many of which can be harrowing and emotionally upsetting.

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