SOUTH WALES POLICE Job security & advancement reviews

The role can be extremely stressful and fast paced. There is room for progression and change in roles however some positions require a 2 year work period prior to changing to new position.

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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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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

Not for everyone.

Custody detention officer (Current Employee) - Cardiff - 8 June 2022

You will be based at 1 of the 4 custody suites, each has its own pro's and cons. Will be required to cover where needed. Staffing levels is a big issue, especially with sickness....stress.Need to be able to deal with detainees who can be very challenging. Mixed bag of compliant detainees and uncooperative ones. It can be very stressful, constant flow of detainees, banging cell doors, constant abuse and having to process (fingerprint, photo) them. There are days where you get plenty of downtime so enjoy those moments, you deserve it!Pay is good now they finally realised the work custody carry out. Shift work 4 on 4 off, there are staff with flexible working in place to suit there needs. Colleagues are good, can't fault them. Just senior management can push you to much. If something goes wrong, even if it's out of your hands, you're made to feel guilty.No career development, no progression as a cdo and will be so lucky if you're able to go on a course.It's not for everyone, it's a secure job. After a couple months you will get into the flow of things and have support from colleagues.

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No two days the same

Police Officer (Retired) (Former Employee) - Bridgend - 18 December 2021

Over thirty years things are bound to change some for the better some not but as long as you are willing to adapt and adopt these changes overall an excellent employer.

Pros

Job Security

Cons

Shift Work

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Good for job security and pension

Operational Support Officer (Current Employee) - Cardiff, Cardiff - 13 November 2020

There is a wide range of jobs you can apply for, including roles that require shift and weekend work which you get paid extra on top of your basic salary. Some roles can be worked from home too.There's also opportunities to gain experience and participate in events which come up from time to time as long as you have your line managers approval.

Pros

Job security. Work unsupervised to a certain extent.

Cons

Long hours. Unsociable hours

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Good employer

Fraud and Financial Investigator (Former Employee) - Cardiff, Cardiff - 7 June 2020

Good working environment with no discriminatory practices and excellent collaborative working. Given latitude to pursue enquiries and flexible working.

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Could do better

Police Officer (Current Employee) - Cardiff, Cardiff - 20 February 2020

As a police officer you are providing a critical front line role in the prevention and detection of crime. Promoting law and order, reducing the fear of crime amongst communities.

Pros

Pay and career progression, for some

Cons

Long hours, no work life balance not family friendly

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Family friendly

Intranet & Website Manager (Current Employee) - Bridgend, Bridgend - 28 January 2020

Good working from home opportunities, flexi etc. however not a place to work if you expect to excel up the ladder. Some of the work is interesting such as building applications that assist with policing.

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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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Jobs at SOUTH WALES POLICE

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Volunteer

Volunteer (Current Employee) - Swansea - 12 February 2019

As a volunteer I find it really rewarding and would really consider a career within the Police in the future as it have provided me with necessary skills.

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work experience

Secondary Education Work Experience (Former Employee) - Cardiff - 20 January 2018

work experience, able to interact with staff, understand procedures and gain information from all personnel levels of the department and gain experience of working hours in a thriving environment. Due to confidential information and sensitive material provided I am unable to elaborate on finer details.

Pros

good

Cons

good

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Rewarding job.

Call Handler/Dispatcher (Former Employee) - Bridgend, South Wales - 10 January 2018

Working shifts mainly answering calls from the public, usually at upsetting or even desperate times for them, it is rewarding to know they have been helped by your actions and advice. As with every public service, budgets are limited and there is pressure to perform to targets (not hard set) whilst providing the best possible service. Working as part of a large professional team with varying levels of experience means there is always help nearby if required. Good pay and career structure for this type of employment.

Pros

Secure job with good employer working in friendly team

Cons

Shiftwork covering 365 days a year

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An excellent career

Police Officer (Current Employee) - Pontypridd, Rhondda Cynon Taff - 29 August 2017

Everyday was different working for SWP as a police officer there were fresh challenges and it became a vocation in life. I learnt true values of working as a team and I was able to work alongside some great people

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Great career prospects/room to grow

Call Handler (Former Employee) - Cardiff - 7 July 2017

Whilst often working in a high pressured environment due to the nature of business, the opportunities to further your career are endless. Work life balance can sometimes be compromised but this can be resolved with the right management team on board.

Pros

Great pay scale

Cons

Long hours/often stressful demanding tasks

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enjoyed working here

Personal Assistant/Administrator (Former Employee) - Bridgend - 28 June 2017

Enjoyed working at South Wales Police, opportunities to progress if you so wish to. Lots of training to go on if you were interested in progressing yourself.

Pros

good pension

Cons

hard to get into different departments

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An excellent employer.

Detective Inspector (Current Employee) - Bridgend, Bridgend - 17 April 2017

An excellent employer which provides great career opportunities supported by the ethos of the Police family and the support networks in place. This is a challenging opportunity for someone who is driven and motivated to serve the public. South Wales Police will do the rest and provide training and equimement enabling you to deliver quality a quality service to the public.

Pros

Great Police family environment

Cons

Heavy workloads and long hours.

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Poor working environment

Clerical/admin assistant (Current Employee) - Cardiff Police Staion - 9 March 2017

Two ters, Police and civilians,not good work ethic, a great deal of harassment and poor recognition, No chance of promotion, as ex police officers always have better jobs

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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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Rewarding and varied career

Police Officer (Former Employee) - Cardiff City - 28 December 2016

A demanding career which is not for many but it brings out many character traits which you think you did not have, abili6to think on your feet to problem solved and to support other. To be assertive when required..ultimately a rewarding career.

Pros

Pension and wages

Cons

Long hours and unsociable hours of employment

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Unpleasant Employer

Front line and administrative (Former Employee) - South Wales Police - 6 December 2016

First the bad and then the good, I Decided to join from another government department, taking a drop in terms and conditions to seek a rewarding career. Found it one of the most unrewarding employers I've worked for. A typical day at work often involves long hours of training, unpaid travel, numerous relocations of your job, excessive scrutiny of your capabilities and unreasonable expectations. If you make a mistake this will be recorded in your file and used to dismiss you after a lengthy and dishonest capability process. Management will be all smiles and politeness throughout. Co workers some are good some are bad, the hardest part of the job is the stress coming at you from management, officers and public. If you are looking for a work life balance do not work here. The good points after suffering a complete nervous breakdown and separation due to the job and family life issues I was sent to Occupational health who did a fine job of trying to help me before management sent me on my way to the unemployment queue at the job centre with an unfair black hole in my CV.