Without clear action we fear that in ten years’ time successors to our Committee will hear the very same arguments and evidence about recruitment and retention that have been rehearsed for over twenty years, and the effectiveness and legitimacy of the police service will be further undermined amongst those communities and interest groups the police have committed to work with and represent. The Home Secretary has described the police recruitment programme as a “once in a lifetime opportunity”...

Without clear action we fear that in ten years’ time successors to our Committee will hear the very same arguments and evidence about recruitment and retention that have been rehearsed for over twenty years, and the effectiveness and legitimacy of the police service will be further undermined amongst those communities and interest groups the police have committed to work with and represent. The Home Secretary has described the police recruitment programme as a “once in a lifetime opportunity” to create a police service that represents the communities it serves. That opportunity must not go to waste. (Paragraph 228) Police misconduct and disci Type: conclusion | Number: 42 | Response status: under_consideration Government response: Police forces should be striving to become more representative of the communities they serve. The policing sector recognises the long-standing challenge that recruiting a more diverse and representative police service presents and has made this ambition cle