Wartime and Beyond

(1945 - 1959)

1939 – World War Two impacts on the service

With the outbreak of war, the right of police officers to retire on pension was suspended, and they were classed as a reserved occupation.  Thousands of officers who were military reservists were called up and their places were taken by temporary police officers, members of the wartime Police Auxiliary Service.

 

1940 – First (temporary) pay rise since 1919

For the first time since Desborough, police pay was increased, thanks to a five shillings a week supplementary payment to take into account wartime inflation, plus a war duty allowance of three shillings in lieu of overtime.  This only applied to men receiving less that £5 a week.

 

1941 – JCC Chairman resigns

A Committee, under Lord Snell, reported that the pensions of police widows and the allowances paid to dependent children should be increased, provided that the pension contribution was increased to 7%.  The Federation opposed any increase in contributions and the Snell Report was shelved.  The JCC Chairman, Inspector Strangeways, resigned after being censured for supporting increased contributions.

 

1943 – Open meetings are restored

The ban on Open Meetings, imposed in 1932, was lifted.

 

1944 – Strained relations with the Home Office

After a long period of strained relations between the Federation and the wartime Home Secretary, Herbert Morrison, the entire JCC was summoned to the Home Office where they were told they were entitled to submit representations.  However if Morrison refused their requests, it was their job to justify his decisions to their membership, not to continue to press their claims.

 

1945 – Pay Scale B is abolished

‘Scale B’, the lower pay scale for post-1932 recruits, was abolished.  Police pay was formally increased for the first time since 1919.

 

1946 – Married women are allowed to service in the police

The ban on married women serving in the police service was lifted.

 

1947 – Rent allowances are increased

The Report of the Police Council Committee on Rent Allowances recommended that the rent allowance should be high enough to reimburse the reasonable rent and rates of all members occupying unfurnished rent property.  New maximum allowances of 30 shillings for the provinces and 35 shillings for London were recommended, and these proposals were accepted by the Government.  The system by which police authorities paid a compensatory grant in respect of income tax on rent allowances was also introduced.

 

1948 – National Police College opens

The national Police College was established, offering higher training for serving officers.  Hendon Police College had closed in 1939, and had not been reopened.

A ‘London Allowance’ was introduced for the first time, starting at £10 a year for constables.

 

1949 – Oaksey Report part 1 launched

The Oaksey Committee of Inquiry into the Police Service published its First Report after a lengthy examination of pay and conditions of service.  Oaksey recommended a modest pay increase, conditional upon police officers agreeing to ‘average’; i.e. to have their pensions based on the their average pensionable pay over the last three years of their service.

The Oaksey recommendations came as a major disappointment and did nothing to solve the great post-war shortage of police officers, caused because police pay continued to lag behind rates available in other areas.

 

1950 – Oaskey Part 2 recommends a new Police Council

Part Two of the Oaksey Report recommended that the advisory Police Council should be replaced by a new body, the Police Council for Great Britain, which would act as a proper negotiating body.  There would be power to reach agreement, subject to the approval of the Home Secretary, and facilities for arbitration in the event of a dispute (except on pensions).

Oaksey also recommended that for the first time the Federation should be permitted to collect voluntary subscriptions from its members.

 

1951 – First arbitration pay award

The first ‘arbitration’ award of police pay was made by Sir Malcolm Trustram Eve, who sat with two assessors to hear the submissions of the Police Federation and the police authorities, after the Police Council failed to reach agreement.  This is widely regarded as a forerunner of the pattern which would emerge under the new Police Council.

 

1952 – The Federation gets a new constitution

The Report of the Police Council Committee on Representative Organisations and Negotiating Machinery was published.  This set out the constitution of the Police Federation, and gave policewomen associate status, although without voting rights.  The Report set out the conditions for collecting contributions to the Federation, and the uses to which the money could, or could not, be put.  There was a complete ban on using the funds for political or trade union purposes.  The Report also contained a draft constitution for the Police Council for Great Britain.

 

1953 – The New Police Council meets for the first time

The first meeting of the Police Council for Great Britain took place in November.  Amongst the agreements reached at this meeting was an 8% pay increase and the London Allowance was doubled to £20 a year (a decision which caused much argument within the Federation).

 

1955 – The Federation collects subscriptions and appoints first Parliamentary adviser

The Federation was first allowed to collect subscriptions of threepence a week.  99% of eligible members contributed.

The standard working week was reduced from 48 hours to 40 hours.

James Callaghan MP was appointed the Federation’s first Consultant and Adviser.  He was principally responsible for negotiations during his first five years in the post.

The first hearing before the new Police Arbitration Tribunal resulted in a major pay increase.  The Tribunal recommended that the award be backdated, but the Government argued that there was no legal power to do so.  Callaghan and the Federation organised a Parliamentary campaign, and the Government gave way, passing legislation enabling the back pay to be granted.

 

1956 – The Federation torn over London rate of pay

The JCC’s refusal to support the Metropolitan Branch Board case for a London rate of pay led to bitter arguments that threaten to split the Federation.

An improved widows’ pension scheme was also introduced.

 

1957 – Rent allowances increase, and the Federation publishes its first Newsletter

The Police Council concluded an important agreement on rent allowances.  This recognised the position of owner-occupiers and introduced the system of assessments of rental values by district valuers.  The maximum limits were increased to 42 shillings and sixpence a week in the provinces and 52 and six in London.

The Federation published its first journal, The Newsletter.

 

1958 – Lump sum pensions are introduced

Agreement was reached on a scheme for voluntary commutation of a portion of a police pension in exchange for a lump sum payable on retirement.  Originally this was only for officers ‘in good health’.

The first standardised competitive exams were held by the Police Examination Board.

 

1959 – Policewomen finally become full members of the Federation

The Police Federation Act of 1959 granted full membership of the Police Federation to policewomen and restored membership to chief inspectors of the Metropolitan Police.

Public anxiety over cases of police corruption and the investigation of complaints led to the appointment of a Royal Commission to examine these subjects.  Strenuous efforts by James Callaghan let to the Commission being asked to examine the broad principles governing the pay of a constable.  This decision was fiercely opposed by the police authorities.