Survey findings summary
To mark the official launch of the Code of Ethics, the College of Policing asked 2,043
members of the public* how they might deal with some of the ethical dilemmas faced every
day by those in policing. Overall:
Response to the scenarios
 There was not always a clear consensus among respondents on the best thing to do
in the scenarios
 Respondents did not always find it easy to decide what to do. In around 1 in every 6
responses to the scenarios (18%), they felt it was either too difficult to make a
decision or that there was no a right or wrong answer
Whether respondents found it easy or hard to make a decision
 44% said they found making the decisions difficult or very difficult
 25% said they found making the decisions easy or very easy
Whether respondents thought the police had to make difficult decisions
 88% agreed that police officers and staff faced difficult decisions every day
 5% disagreed that the police faced difficult decisions on a daily basis
Whether respondents felt the scenarios changed their opinions
 40% said they thought the challenges facing the police when making decisions were
harder than they previously thought
 3% said they thought challenges the police faced were easier than they previously
thought
Whether respondents would want to be in the same position as the police
 68% said they wouldn’t want to be in the position of a police officer or staff member
making those decisions
 21% said they would want to be the position to make those decisions
Whether respondents felt a Code of Ethics would be useful
 68% felt a Code of Ethics would be useful to officers and staff faced with these
difficult decisions.
 Fewer than 1 in 20 people (4%) thought a Code of Ethics would not be useful in
these situations
Dilemmas
Below are the six ethical dilemmas posed to members of the public, with the topline results.
Dilemma 1
Youths hanging around a shop after dark; shopkeeper feels intimidated and wants them
moved on but no crime has been committed.
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85% said they would try talking to the youths to get them to move on
7% said they would leave the youths as they’d not done anything wrong
7% said it was too difficult to decide, or that there was no right or wrong answer
This scenario resulted in the most consensus among respondents
Dilemma 2
A man with severe mental health problems is agitated and talking about harming himself.
There is no specialist mental health response team available.
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42% said they would try to encourage the man out of his house to arrest him under
Section 136 and take him to a cell as a place of safety
17% said they would leave the man as it is a medical matter, not a policing matter.
Respondents found this one the toughest to answer – 30% either felt it was too
difficult to decide or that there was no right or wrong answer
Dilemma 3
A man preaching in a busy shopping centre; locals are upset that he is expressing extremist
views – but he has not yet crossed the line into inciting hatred.
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68% said they would ask the man to move
13% said they would let him continue preaching
15% felt it was either too difficult to decide or that there was no right or wrong answer
Dilemma 4
A protest march is planned by a group well known for creating community tensions. The
chief constable has to make a decision between the operation needed to protect the
community and the financial constraints on the force.
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28% said they would scale back the resources available
27% said they would approve the additional resources and worry about the cost later
26% said they would ask their Police and Crime Commissioner for additional funds –
knowing that this would reduce funding for victim services
16% felt it was either too difficult to decide or that there was no right or wrong answer
This was the most divisive dilemma, with an even spread of answers among the
three courses of action given
Dilemma 5
A distressed mother has reported a 16 year old boy for having sex with her 15 year old
daughter. The teenagers say the act was consensual.
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47% said they would let the boy off with a warning despite the fact he has broken the
law
A quarter (25%) said they would arrest him, knowing that this risks him being placed
on the sex offender register
22% felt it was either too difficult to decide or that there was no right or wrong answer
Dilemma 6
Two cars approach a traffic light – both drivers are using their mobile phone. One driver is a
young male in a scruffy BMW that may be involved in supplying drugs in the area. The other
is a smartly dressed 30-something female in a new silver Mercedes with an empty child seat
in the front. The lights change; the drivers move off, still both using their phones.
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55% said they would stop the BMW
10% said they would stop the Mercedes
A fifth (19%) felt it was either too difficult to decide or felt there was no right or wrong
answer
Survey information
The survey was conducted by ICM and was based on a sample of 2,043 online interviews
with 18+ adults randomly sourced from its online GB online panel. The online omnibus
integrates nationally representative quotas, which means the sample will have a specified
number of women, men, age groups including 65+, respondents from each social grade, and
will reach people in the 11 government regions.