Has your confidence in the UK police changed?
Posted by Velvety2@reddit | AskUK | View on Reddit | 28 comments
Hi, I’m a journalism student working on a feature about public trust in the police. I’m interested in hearing from people in the UK about their personal views or experiences. Have your perceptions of the police changed at all in recent years? This could be from direct experiences, things you’ve seen online, or general feelings. If you’re happy to, I may quote responses anonymously in my university work. Thanks in advance!
arenicolamarina@reddit
I always avoid contact with police & journalists due to experiences I had in my youth, both aren't to be trusted.
Bristol666@reddit
I wish they would be more honest. A couple of years ago I gave them photos of a couple of council workers trying to break into my car. Got a clear photo of the face of one of them, the registration of their vehicle and the company they worked for. The police claimed they couldn't do anything because they'd asked Bristol City Council for some information and hadn't got a reply. They also said it would be too dangerous for them to go and talk to the guys (I had told them where in Bristol they were working). If they'd said they did have anyone available because of knife crime or sexual assaults or whatever, I would have been ok with it, although still a bit disappointed. To outright lie about the situation has really dented my opinion of the police in this country.
WanderingBasenji@reddit
I've only contacted the police twice. I probably wouldn't bother again, unless I was in immediate physical danger.
The first time I contacted them about an ex boyfriend who had been harrassing me. He'd sent hundreds of emails about how he was going to come to my house, have me gang-raped, all that lovely stuff. Calling me all day and all night, finding any social media and harrassing me on there too. You get the picture.
I'd compiled all the phone records, emails etc. into a folder. The officer flipped through it, and literally chuckled(that scoff has been burned into my brain), then told me there was nothing they could do as he lived in London so was out of their jurisdiction.
Second time - we had a a few men break into the house while we were there. We locked ourselves in the bathroom and my boyfriend called the police, and in fairness they turned up very quickly, probably took about ten minutes?
Fortunately the men had left as soon as they realised the house was occupied. So the police just took some swabs and then left. Nothing else happened.
mailywhale@reddit
I am afraid to say every interaction I’ve had with the police has involved them completely failing to help, and on occasion has made things worse. I imagine this is a common review
SatisfactionMoney426@reddit
I used to work in a benefit office 30 years ago and daily dealt with homeless/druggies etc who were hassled by the police - they'd be stopped, have their giro or order book taken and torn up so they had to come in and report it and have to wait 3 days for another one. Be stopped and questioned on their way into benefit office so they'd miss an appointment and have no money for a few days etc. etc. More than a few had the same scar from having 'accidently' hit their head on the van door being arrested, literally being shoved down metal stairs to the custody room etc. Being dumped 3 or 4 miles out of town. Nowadays police can't even be arsed to do that, Police will literally see a crime and just walk past. People openly deal drugs on the road outside my flat and swap shoplifted stuff. A known 'drug den' openly operates at the end of the street. Got raided twice in 4 years but opened up within days. Too many phone cameras and the police are too worried to do anything - easier to ignore than end up on tiktok ... I think they used to care - a bit - and try to keep a lid on things, but now are just apathetic.
Bubble-Master96@reddit
Any good perception I had was absolute destroyed after Sarah Everard. Not only for her horrific murder that could have been prevented, but the way those women were treated at the vigil.
If I saw a lone female being accosted by a lone police officer, I would stop to ensue there was a witness.
DonkeyJousting@reddit
Or a trans person. Or a non-binary person. Or a young person. Or an old person. Or an immigrant. Or a person the police might suspect is an immigrant. Or mentally ill person. Or a drunk person. Or a person who seems too chill like they might not exercise their legal rights. Or guys named Dave. Or guys who look like they could theoretically be named Dave. Or guys named something other than Dave.
I’m just a huge fan of keeping an eye on the polis, lads.
Bubble-Master96@reddit
What was the objective of this comment?
DonkeyJousting@reddit
That people should stop and observe police officers, especially lone police officers, when they witness aggressive interactions between them and the general public.
Scotchnittenpoopen@reddit
You are in more danger of death being in police custody, than the police are in danger from the public.
The police have lost all credibility, and it’s almost a laughing matter that they would rather investigate mean tweets, than a burglary.
mb271828@reddit
I have always been wary of the police, they have a lot of power to make your life very difficult on nothing more than a 2 out of 10 suspicion that you're actually guilty, and generally I've found them to be pretty clueless on the finer points of their powers and my rights whenever I've been forced to deal with them, so my confidence has never been great.
However, I have always been willing to accept the above on the basis that I don't need them to be legal scholars, but just be there when I need them and investigate crimes against me with reasonable care and skill. Unfortunately my experience in the couple of times I've needed them in the last few years (since austerity really) is that they are unable/unwilling to hold up their end of the bargain, so my confidence is basically zero to the point that I'm almost actively hostile to them.
FrostyImplement9565@reddit
A few years ago, we had a break in. Thousands of pounds worth of stuff was stolen. The police didn’t even turn up they just gave an incident number and left us to it. It was at that point I lost my trust with them entirely.
Mr_Ham_Man80@reddit
Not hugely for me. Whilst I don't have an automatic distrust of authority, I understand that it's still fallible people wearing a uniform. I've never had a bad experience myself, only really interacted with police a handful of times in my life and it has fortunately been pleasant enough. I know people that have had unpleasant experiences though, for no reasons caused by them.
Those unpleasant experiences tend to inform my view more. When someone is in a position of authority then there is an expectation of certain behaviour, so when that's not met, it stands out more. When someone has that position of power, it's not acceptable that they bully people, do all the racisms (hello 1980s) etc... Or get all pissy when they drive into my mate's stationary car whilst he's legally parked and sleeping at a service station and they somehow manage to drive into him.
They're also not arbiters of moral authority because they can and will follow any given whims of whichever government is in charge. I can trust individuals within an organisation as I meet them, but not the organisation itself. So "tools of the establishment" is not an unfair charge.
ppppanda@reddit
As part of my job I have had to call the police on a semi regular basis. In general I have never had a bad experience with the officers themselves.
However we are often left waiting longer than we would like for them to attend. On occasions when I have spoken to them regarding this or just generally chatting while waiting for something they have said that it is not uncommon that there is so few of them on patrol at one time that they are often all assigned to calls with nobody spare to respond to new calls that come in. They often only have the resources to respond to actively violent situations and any non violent crimes where the is no risk of someone getting hurt have to be ignored.
Simply put officer numbers have been cut back so far that they are often left unable to do the job. I would also imagine if they are constantly rushing between jobs they are also not giving each case the time it deserved which likely Leeds to them making more mistakes.
PKblaze@reddit
Hasn't changed much.
I remember them being useless as a kid. They did nothing to help when they were needed. Even to the point that a kid got beat up outside the station.
They're still about as useless, rarely even being involved nowadays or making foolish decisions. For example, they were chasing some guy a couple of weeks back. Rather than trapping them on both sides, they stood around on one side, watched the guy flee, and then yelled "wait there" whilst the guy ran off the other way. Absolutely useless.
oh_f-f-s@reddit
I'm torn.
I know a few police officers and they're not perfect people but they do a tough job with fuck all resources. So I sympathise with them.
On the other hand, it boils my piss when I see law abiding people become victims of crime and there's negligible or possibly non existent legal repercussions for them.
It could get to the point where people lose so much faith in the police that they take matters into their own hands. And that should concern everyone
Sensitive_Guest_5995@reddit
Saw a couple of coppers assault a drunk man in central station. Just shoved him down the stairs. Absolutely no need for it.
Was searched at 15 cause ‘someone was dealing drugs in the area’
So. Yeah. Not had a great limited experience.
HomeworkInevitable99@reddit
More clickbait.
ByteSizedGenius@reddit
I don't think so. I have never put them on a pedestal nor thought they are inherently bad. It's not a job I envy, I'm glad I don't need to put a stab vest on when I start work.
Like any group of 100,000+ people in the population unfortunately you're going to get some of the lowest forms of pond life sprinkled in.
UKBigCherry@reddit
the police do nothing. even with evidence they say they have no time or resources to pursue criminals.
i have police cctv footage, even forensic evidence which came back as a match to someone when my car was broken into.
nothing.
absolutely nothing. i want to leave the uk because of the level of criminality.
HomeworkInevitable99@reddit
There were approximately 754,046 arrests made by the 43 territorial police forces in England and Wales in the year ending March 2025,
jameswill100@reddit
What police?
HomeworkInevitable99@reddit
Those police.
HMS_Hexapuma@reddit
They're like most public services. Overstretched and underfunded. They screw up on occasion and the government is dangerously overreaching in some places but in general they seem to be composed of fairly decent people and I appreciate that.
Excali20@reddit
I know nobody in my life who would actively seek out the police for help for anything.
Ok_Gur_8059@reddit
If you've had an experience with the police where you feel they acted inappropriately look for no win no fee actions against the police solicitors, they can request everything they need from the police to see if you have a case. Independent advice never hurts.
_Norfolk_Ingway_@reddit
No. It was never very high in the first place
AutoModerator@reddit
Please help keep AskUK welcoming!
When replying to submission/post please make genuine efforts to answer the question given. Please no jokes, judgements, etc. If a post is marked 'Serious Answers Only' you may receive a ban for violating this rule.
Don't be a dick to each other. If getting heated, just block and move on.
This is a strictly no-politics subreddit!
Please help us by reporting comments that break these rules.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.