SOUTH WALES POLICE Culture reviews

Officers are under a lot of pressure, have high workloads and constantly being dragged from pillar to post. Management are on your case all the time and there is a culture of shouty emails and telling off for falling behind (which is inevitable given the workload). The people in the organisation are incredible, and a credit to Policing.Uniform and kit is hard to come by, but of decent quality. Vehicles are of reasonable condition and fit for purpose. Double crewing policy is in place so safer and more sociable than some other forces.

Pros

Great people. Occasional satisfaction from the work completed.

Cons

Antisocial working hours, no work life balance, Management can be a bit oppressive (above inspector level), not enough officers, and dealing with utter grief every day

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Not what it was

Police Constable (Former Employee) - Cardiff - 14 November 2023

I did 16 years in the job and to start with I loved it and in the end I hated it. The culture isn't for me and I was getting worried and concerned by the age of the people coming through.

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Insights into SOUTH WALES POLICE

Based on 32 survey responses

What people like

Support from manager
Ability to meet personal goals
Ability to learn new things

Areas for improvement

General feeling of work happiness
Time and location flexibility
Overall satisfaction

Interesting work but stressful

Clerical Assistant (Current Employee) - Bridgend - 17 September 2023

What is the best part of working at the company?Job Security. Nice friendly colleaguesWhat is the most stressful part about working at the company?To much work not enough staff to do itWhat is the work environment and culture like at the company?Okay. Good work environment. Friendly people What is a typical day like for you at the company?Stressful. To much work. Not paid enough

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Exciting and rewarding role

Accounts Assistant (Former Employee) - HQ - 12 June 2021

South wales police is a wonderful place to work, the team spirit is excellent and the rewards are excellent.

Pros

Staff wellbeing is very important at SWP

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Stressful but rewarding

Custody Detention Officer (Current Employee) - Cardiff, Cardiff - 5 January 2020

A stressful environment to work in, however the support provided by other colleagues and management is really good. A unique and rewarding role.......

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Something once held in high regard no longer worth pursuing.

Police Officer (Former Employee) - Wales - 12 October 2019

In today's climate it is not a career worth pursuing. Pension has become worthless and other investement needed to create a viable secured future. Wage not representitive of the amount of work your doing. You can make the equivalent wage managing in mcdonalds. Risk management not adequte with todays culture. Disciplinary system very intrusive into personal life and does not respect privacy.

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Twice the work with half the staff

Call Centre Agent (Former Employee) - Bridgend - 2 June 2019

The job in itself was great. I felt like I was doing something good not just for myself but others. The issue was office politics and cutting corners. Everyone was expected to be a Jack of all trades, master of none. When I joined SWP in the control room, you had to wait for a vacancy..... which meant either waiting for someone to retire or get promoted........ Now they have halved the staff, maybe more and I witnessed so many people being stressed to the point of experienced and brilliant people leave. Rest days were cancelled. Booking holidays a nightmare. Any days where big events were on, you were made to work. The department became so bad, that by the time I left, I hardly new anyone as everyone who started working there only used it as a stepping stone to get into the police.

Pros

Relatively good pay

Cons

Long hours, High demand, Stressful environment

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productive

Tutor and Mentorship (Former Employee) - Swansea, Swansea - 8 September 2018

I thoroughly enjoyed my time within SWP carrying out a job which I loved and thrived on. Every day was a challenge. The team work ethic is amazing and I have met some amazing people whom I will class as best friends for life. Shift work and constant challenges inspired me.

Pros

benefits

Cons

long hours and stress

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Hard stressful job

Control Room Operator (Former Employee) - Bridgend - 14 May 2018

I personally found it unfriendly, harsh with long hours and constant criticism. Would have excelled at job if workplace culture was less critical and managers were more supportive rather than out to get new people for making mistakes after only 12 weeks training.

Pros

interesting

Cons

Poor support from collegues or managers

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Excellent place

HR Business Partner (Current Employee) - Brdigedn - 20 October 2017

great colleagues, unfortunately not enough hours in the day to complete everything to a brilliant solution. Also due to govt cuts not enough staff to complete everything

Pros

Colleagues

Cons

not enough hours and staff to do the best role

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Rewarding Career

Police Community Support Officer (Current Employee) - Mountain Ash, Rhondda Cynon Taff - 13 October 2017

Dealing with members of the public daily Gained A1 Assessor qualification Strong Management Fun, rewarding, fast paced dealing with deaths helping

Pros

Helping people in need. Meeting different people from different backgrounds and cultures.

Cons

Long hours that impacts on your family.

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Avoid at all costs

Police Constable (Former Employee) - Bridgend, Bridgend - 6 June 2017

Very damned if you do, damned if you dont culture which looks to serve the purposes of those in favour i.e the masons. Again, I cannot stress enough. Avoid at all costs as the work life balance will be completely ruined.

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Reliable employer

Civil Controller (Former Employee) - Bridgend - 9 March 2017

i enjoyed time with SWP, especially the camaraderie of the staff. Exciting job with fairly good prospects and job security. Fun atmosphere with fellow colleagues.

Pros

Good salary

Cons

Shift work

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Fun Workplace

NCALT Administrator (Current Employee) - Bridgend - 13 July 2016

Very Good Work Colleagues Hard Working Teams Poor Communication from Management Most enjoyable part of the day is working together to acheive our deadlines with very good products. Hardest part of the job is lack of communication whilst going through job uncertainties.

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Police Officer.

Police Officer (Former Employee) - Maesteg - 25 February 2016

The police is a way of life not just a job. If you can adapt to the life, the culture, the hours and the demand you may find this career extremely rewarding. If you cannot adapt you will be quickly found out and ruthlessly exposed. Opportunity for advancement either for promotion or specialisation is present, however, extremely competitive. Management support is very much dependant on the individual manager, the circumstances and their affection for an individual.

Pros

Ultimate job satisfaction when helping the public.

Cons

Long, damanding shifts.Stress of police work and personal danger.

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Challenging job

Police Community Support Officer (Former Employee) - Swansea - 2 April 2014

Dealing with all aspects in the community. Team work was very important, as you are a public body and have to work together to resolve all issues in the community. Learnt a lot about different cultures and their standards. Hardest part I would say was not achieving your goals as there were some things which could not be resolved. Being part of a very large work force, facing new challenges and expectations, would probably be the most enjoyable and knowing that you made a difference.