Concerned police officers propose food bank for new recruitsindependent One in 10 people admit to being dependent on handouts, it can be revealed.

Data shows a record number of police officers struggled with food poverty last year and turned to food banks as wages stagnated.

According to a survey of more than 6,000 serving police officers, one in five officers have missed meals to make ends meet and nearly 10% have used a food bank in the past 12 months.

The figure has increased by almost 50 per cent in three years, with officials warning that morale is at an all-time low and the force is losing staff, with one in five planning to resign within the next two years.

The figures were released after senior British Transport Police (BTP) officials proposed setting up a food bank to support new recruits at Springhouse Training Academy in Islington, north London. However, the project did not move forward; independent Understood.

According to the Police Federation, the average salary for police officers in England and Wales is just £23,556, although police forces based in London have extra weighting and BTP pay scales vary.

Starting pay is more than £4,000 less than for officers who joined the force before 2013, when then-Home Secretary Theresa May slashed officers’ pay through a series of controversial austerity measures.

By comparison, a newly qualified band 5 nurse earns £28,407 – rising to £34,089 in the capital with the help of the High Cost Area Subsidy (HCAS).

Experts fear low pay is driving officers out of the force – with a record number of veterans leaving the force last year – and will hamper efforts to improve standards in the wake of a series of shocking scandals involving officers.

A police source told independent: “New recruits are expected to learn everything they can while using a food bank and changing the face of policing. How is this possible?

A police officer has revealed he had applied to use a food bank but was refused because he has a job and now relies on an app to resell expired food.

Matthew, 49, from Southend, works six days a week for the Metropolitan Police and earns £32,000 a year.

However, the officer is single and cannot afford to live in the capital, spending more than £200 a month on fuel to and from Southend, Essex.

He said more than half of his monthly salary is spent on rent, and the rest is eaten up by bills, food and other expenses.

“I had to skip meals at work because I couldn’t afford breakfast, lunch or dinner. I worked ten hours a day but I was always hungry,” he said. independent.

“Because I was working ten hours, six days a week, I found meal preparation very difficult. I was always overdrawn – I was living hand to mouth.”

He said he was facing council tax, utility bills and food bills amid a cost-of-living crisis, adding: “Everything is going up except wages.

“I’m worried that when I finally retire I’ll be homeless. I don’t have any savings. I’m definitely panicking.”

Matthew revealed he and his colleagues often considered quitting frontline police work amid harsh conditions as officers were left horrified by the actions of rogue officers, including the kidnapping, rape and murder of Sarah Everard in London Detective Inspector Wayne Couzens of the Police Department.

“Morale has been terrible over the last year with all these scandals coming to light. We’re all working hard. We’re all trying to fight crime. But every day we come in and say police officers are rapists and murderers,” he said.

“A lot of people are talking about moving from frontline jobs to different parts of the police, or alternatives to frontline policing.”

Annette Petchey of police finance experts Metfriend, which carried out the research, said: “It is unacceptable that police officers do not have enough money to support themselves and their families.

“I know I can’t make the best decisions when I’m hungry, so how on earth can we expect police officers to make life-or-death decisions when they’re forced to skip meals because of their financial situation?”

She insisted policing was at a “real turning point”, adding that it was “no surprise” that so many people were considering leaving the force.

She added: “More must be done to support our emergency services lifeblood and recognize the critical value played by police.”

It comes after the Police Federation, which represents rank-and-file officers, warned earlier this month that despite a 7% pay rise for officers last year, police were facing a “perfect storm” in recruitment and retention.

The federation said police pay had failed to keep pace with the rest of the public sector or with inflation, with police pay rising by just 40 per cent between 2000 and 2023, compared with 98 per cent in the rest of the public sector.

Chairman Steve Hartshorn told independent: “They feel like it’s not worth being a cop anymore. We’ve never been this bad.”

Responding to the food bank figures, he added: “This is not a good advertisement for policing in 2024 and cannot be allowed to continue.

“How can we have a profession where we can’t support our families, but at the same time we see them risking their lives to rescue people from burning buildings or stop violence?

“As a society, we have a responsibility to do better for our police officers, staff and their families.”

Meanwhile, Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley called for a pay rise and a £2,000 weighting increase in London to help recruits afford housing, childcare and other costs in London.