BME Progression 2018 programme
The College of Policing has been commissioned to develop and deliver a national programme to
improve the recruitment, development, progression and retention of black and minority ethnic (BME)
officers and staff.
If the police are to be effective in tackling crime and bringing offenders to justice, they must reflect,
understand and enjoy the trust and confidence of all the diverse communities they serve. This is
enshrined in the principles established by Sir Robert Peel, founder of the Metropolitan Police that "the
police are the public and the public are the police."
To enable policing by consent and cooperation and to deliver frontline policing effectively, the police
service must recruit, develop and retain from the widest pool of talent, including BME communities.
The police service recognises this and has been working to build a more representative workforce.
There is undoubtedly good practice across different forces - but this is not found consistently, it is not
shared across the service, and there is not a single location where it is retained and updated.
Under the BME Progression 2018 programme, the College will work proactively in partnership with
forces, staff associations, diversity groups and communities to deliver improvements that are
sustainable. Future recommendations and interventions will be based on a firm evidence base of 'what
works.' But we will also test new ideas and initiatives where no evidence base exists.
Our aim is to increase BME representation by 2018 across all ranks and in specialist roles in the police
service. We want policing to be a career of choice for the most talented people from every
community.
What will the programme deliver?
To achieve this outcome, the BME Progression 2018 programme will:
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deliver national guidance on positive action to all police forces in England and Wales
work with forces to develop tailored personal development plans for BME officers, providing
them with the necessary training and experience to help them progress
improve learning and development products, which will include the College's Releasing
Potential programme (for chief inspectors from under-represented groups) and Realising
Potential programme (for superintendents and chief superintendents)
Collate national guidance and best-practice products and services, by bringing together the
evidence of what works on positive action in policing and in other sectors.
Current progress
To date, we have carried out the first-ever national survey of all BME officers, to build a complete
picture of BME officer career progression, professional development and aspirations. More than 3,000
BME officers completed the questionnaire. The responses are important as they will help the BME
Progression 2018 programme identify the barriers that BME officers face in progressing to higher
ranks or seeking to work in specialist posts.
All police forces in England and Wales have also been surveyed and have provided the programme
with valuable information on their experiences around the recruitment, development, progression and
retention of BME officers.
Detailed analysis of the findings from both surveys will be pulled together into a report by the College
that will also set out recommendations for improving BME representation within policing. We aim to
have the report ready for publication in the autumn. A copy will be shared with each force, all BME
officers and key stakeholders. The programme team will run workshops to help forces put action plans
in place.
We are also drawing up positive action guidance, following independent legal advice that we have
received, to ensure that forces can with confidence use existing legislation under the Equality Act 2010
to legally recruit and promote BME officers and staff on equal merit.
Other activities
The BME Progression 2018 programme will also:
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assess the use of Unconscious Bias as a tool in identifying and overcoming potential bias in
recruitment and progression
expand the existing mentoring programmes in policing
hold workshops for forces currently recruiting and using Positive Action initiatives
develop Releasing Potential programmes for sergeants and inspectors
Introduce a pre-vetting process to screen out at an earlier stage potential candidates who are
not eligible to become police officers because of convictions or financial history.