SOUTH WALES POLICE Management reviews

You will always have the support of most of the managers in the building. If you need something, nine time out of ten, it is given to you with no questions asked.On the downside, if you do not fit into the mould, you tend to be treated differently by the management team.

Pros

Secure parking.

Cons

Repetitive.

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Ruined

Police Constable (Current Employee) - Cardiff, Cardiff - 1 July 2023

Used to be a great job, joined at a young age and sold a dream. Turns out it’s full of incompetent arrogant deeply dissatisfied people. Avoid at all costs if you have any self respect

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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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Stressful but rewarding

Police Officer (Former Employee) - Swansea - 20 December 2021

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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Can be a very Poisonous place to work and bullying atmosphere

Police Officer (Former Employee) - Every where - 25 March 2020

Retired after 26 years and can say i loved the roles and job i actually did as a police officer. However, the management and Hr and legal services are mentally bullying, no care for staff or officers, SMT need to be investigated by outside forces and independent organisations (IOPCC) or crime commissioner as they are just corrupt.

Pros

Proud to have supplied a service to the public

Cons

No support, no welfare support, no mental health support, Corrupt SMT and HR departments and Complaints department

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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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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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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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Modern Policing?

Police Officer (Former Employee) - Bridgend, Bridgend - 9 August 2017

From a 'frontline' perspective, police management have gone far too much toward pleasing everyone except their own staff. Today's Political Correctness is stretched to include idiotic matters which reduce the effectiveness of those tasked with keeping law and order.

Pros

Comradery

Cons

Modern managers

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Jobs at SOUTH WALES POLICE

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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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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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Poor management and lack of respect for personal life

Police Constable (Current Employee) - South Wales police - 10 January 2017

Difficult job not very rewarding due to dealing with so many savoury characters the balance is all wrong and there's never any gratitude for good work. Management are very restricting and there is no officer discretion. The police cancel many of your rest days to suit shortages in staff and there is no consideration for plans already made. If your called for court it will most often be your only rest days before going straight back into your normal six days on.

Pros

Steedy income

Cons

Long hours never finish on time don't get paid for working on.

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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.

Pros

Good medical teams

Cons

Everything

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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 in a challenging environment

Civilian Detention Officer (Current Employee) - Cardiff, WLS - 20 January 2016

Dealing with non-compliant prisoners on a daily basis. Although job is demanding it is also rewarding. The hardest part of the job is coming to terms with the fact that we are severely underpaid for the job that we do. I have learned that there are many aspects to peoples personalities and that one should not judge a book by its cover. co-workers are fantastic and working relationships are brilliant despite receiving little ot no support from upper management.

Pros

good working relationships with co-workers

Cons

poorly paid, long shifts, non compliant prisoners

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Interesting, Challenging and Rewarding

Performance Analyst (Current Employee) - Bridgend - 18 August 2015

Multi-tasking and prioritising your workload daily to deal with demands. You have to negotiate your way through your priorities. I have learnt the importance of team work and being confident in putting my change ideas out there for consideration. I have learnt that different managers have different styles and understanding this can assist in your delivery of products. The hardest part of my job is dealing with the demand within a set time frame. You have to be confident to make the tough calls and believe in what you do and that it is the best you can do. The most rewarding part of the job is seeing your ideas come to fruition. Being asked to brief others on your ideas and getting positive feedback and guidance. A flattened management structure that allows you to develop your skills and take on new challenges.

Pros

Personal Development if you motivate yourself

Cons

Lack of financial reward

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Challenging, rewarding, time consuming

Crime Scene Investigator (Current Employee) - Bridgend, South Wales, UK - 29 March 2015

- Typical day - attend an examine all manner of crime scenes with the intention of identifying the culprit. Dealing with members of the public who have been victims of crime and providing them with a professional service. - I learn about people and how to provide individuals with a professional service in accordance with their specific needs and requirements. Learn more skills about the job everyday as each crime scene attended presents different challenges so I have to be dynamic, proactive and focused at all times. - I deal with all levels of management on a daily basis and am able to address or brief them in a confidant and professional manner. I have an excellent relationship with the management hierarchy. - Hardest part of the job can be dealing with un-savoury or gruesome incidents and tragic accidents. However working as a professional in a job of this nature I am secure in the fact that the job I do is vital in identifying what has happened and bringing offenders involved to justice. - The most enjoyable part of the job is knowing that I have made something happen, whether it be putting a stop to a crime wave that has been happening in a certain area or recovering a vital piece of evidence in a serious criminal inquiry. Knowing that I have gone above and beyond what is expected of me and getting results from this is extremely rewarding both personally and for the organization I work for.