Pros
Once you’re in, job security is almost guaranteed — it’s very difficult for anyone to be moved on, regardless of performance.
Cons
Career development is practically non-existent. Even when staff pursue training, there’s no follow-up or opportunity to use new skills. A culture of bullying is tolerated at multiple levels. Comments and behaviour from managers would be unacceptable in most other organisations. HR routinely ignores its own duty-of-care responsibilities. Policies such as “Dignity at Work” exist only on paper and are not applied in practice. Communication is broken. Attempts to raise issues go unanswered or are quietly buried. Many officers are visibly exhausted and demoralised, having lost motivation years ago. As a result, it’s difficult to deliver the level of professionalism expected by the public. Leadership is not based on merit — many managers have simply outlasted capable colleagues and been promoted by default. There are internal practices that could expose the organisation to significant financial or legal risk.