The chair of West Midlands Police Federation says the Force needs to focus on making the job ‘more attractive’ if the goal is to recruit more officers from a BAME background over the next two years.

Rich Cooke’s comments come after recent figures revealed that the Force is ‘not on target’ to achieving the target set out by the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Simon Foster, who wants 1,000 officers from BAME backgrounds to be recruited across the West Midlands by March 2025.

In light of the results, which also showed that representation of BAME groups across all roles in the Force has increased from 14.6 per cent to 15.3 per cent, Mr Foster has pledged to work with new Chief Constable Craig Guildford to ‘improve performance’ in increasing diversity across the force.

“While I agree it’s a good thing to set long-term goals like this, I think it’s a wider issue - and a lot more complicated than simply saying we need to recruit more officers from BAME groups,” said Rich.

“I started the job 23 years ago and I’ve seen the Force become so much more diverse over that time. Things aren’t going to change overnight, but we’re certainly becoming more representative of the people we serve - especially in the West Midlands, which has one of the most diverse populations in the country.

“Personally though, I believe, it’s all about making the job a lot more attractive - and that’s for everyone. If we do this, then we are sure to get more people from all different backgrounds applying for roles.

“I know the Force has started to look at routes into the job - with the non-degree entry recently re-introduced, but I can’t stress enough how much of a barrier things like salary are. It’s a real blocker and I don’t think it encourages people - from all backgrounds, including BAME groups - to join.”

Rich also says that ‘bringing back localised policing’ will help recruit too.

He continued: “Again, it all goes back to local policing. I’ve been shouting hard about getting local bobbies back on our streets and I will continue to do so until we see change. If we get our bobbies back on the streets - and officers from BAME groups being seen in the community, surely that will encourage young people to apply too?

“Ultimately, if our communities are seeing familiar faces in their area, giving them the opportunity to get to know officers, I think it will have a positive impact on overall recruitment - and will help us achieve the PCC’s target too.”