South Yorkshire Police Federation: ‘We don’t accept that our force is institutionally racist’

Steve Kent, chairman of South Yorkshire Police Federation, says the organisation in the county is unhappy over comments made by national head of the federation, Steve Hartshorn, who accepts the police is ‘institutionally racist’

Mr Kent said the SYP Federation did not accept that policing was institutionally racist, and was frustrated that this had been said by the national chair of the PFEW (Police Federation England and Wales), as despite it being a ‘personal view’, it was then ‘inevitably portrayed’ that it was the view of the federation, which he said it was not.

Mr Kent said: “This is not coming from a point of view of being in denial, defensive or refusing to accept aspects of the Casey report. The Casey report affects all policing and not just the Met to remove any doubt on that point.

“It could be argued that society as a whole is, in parts, institutionally racist, and to suggest policing is an outlier is damaging and further unfairly undermines public trust.

“In fact I would say that SYP from observation is actually very positive in terms of the equality work that is done. The force and the drives to create a diverse workplace are ambitious and progressive. Can more be done? Of course, and any bad officers in policing or any organisation need to be rooted out. But that needs to be across the piste and across society and it shouldn’t be for the police to harm itself and its reputation by blindly accepting this title which is quite frankly unfair and disproportionate to the 99.9 per cent of officers doing an impossible job, literally putting their lives on the line every day.”

He added officers were out every day bearing the brunt of the fallout following ‘disproportionate national press’ following the appalling high profile cases of two Metropolitan Police officers. He said that to add to that they now have to shoulder an incorrect perception that policing is racist, especially from some people who might not fully understand what the term ‘institutional racism’ actually means and refers to, and who therefore may believe it simply means police officers are racist.

He said: “This also creates a barrier to the work SYP and other forces are trying to achieve in continuing to create a more diverse workforce and to improve our relationships with our communities.”

Mr Hartshorn had told the Guardian he accepted the Metropolitan police was institutionally racist, misogynistic and homophobic, and accepted in full the findings of the report on the Met by Baroness Louise Casey which listed failings which have severely damaged the reputation of the Met.

The report came in the wake of the cases of ex-PC Wayne Couzens, who killed Sarah Everard, and rapist officer David Carrick. Both used their position as serving officers to commit heinous crimes.

Mr Hartshorn said he accepted the term ‘institutional’.

He added: “What’s the harm in accepting it if we understand that it’s not labelling every officer as institutionally racist, sexist, homophobic, corrupt?

“There’s been clear failings in leadership … to address the very issues that should have been dealt with, and consigned to history.”

“If it’s institutional failings of racism, sexism, homophobia, that has to sit at levels of senior leadership throughout the organisation.”