“Second-Class Citizens” – Professional Inequity in UK Policing

This research explores how police staff, the civilian employees who make up over a third of the police workforce in England and Wales, experience law enforcement culture and professional inequity. Based on thirty-two semi-structured interviews with senior police staff from 23 UK policing organisations, analysed thematically, it identifies normalised discriminatory language, behaviours and processes, intersectional disadvantage linked to gender and ethnicity, limited progression opportunities, and a strong public service motivation that may buffer these strains. It proposes a whole-systems approach to enhancing professional equity in policing organisations.