Introduction

The post-financial crisis politics of austerity have required police forces in England and Wales to make unprecedented savings at a rapid pace. In response, some forces have turned to the market, outsourcing back office and front-line functions to commercial enterprises which promise to deliver the same service (or more) for less. This trend has unsurprisingly captured the attention of policing scholars who have started to explore attendant issues of policy (Crawford, 2013), politics (White, 2015), accountability (Rogers and Gravelle, 2012) and service delivery (White, 2014, 2018). This chapter adds another variable into the equation: vulnerability in the labour force. It does so by comparing the experiences of front-line workers in non-outsourced and outsourced police custody suites. It argues that in addition to the common vulnerabilities in evidence across the traditional nonoutsourced police labour force, those in outsourced roles confront a further set of vulnerabilities specific to the market for policing. This finding deepens our understanding of the implications arising from austerity-era police outsourcing.

The chapter develops this line of argumentation over four sections. The next section traces the impact of the post-financial crisis politics of austerity upon the policing landscape, focusing on budget cuts and cost reduction strategies. It also reviews the extant scholarship on this trend, highlighting a gap when it comes to issues of labour force vulnerability. The following section examines the common vulnerabilities experienced by front-line workers in traditional nonoutsourced custody suites, such as the complexity of police work, limited resources, lack of training and feeling over-scrutinised – many of which, incidentally, have been exacerbated under conditions of austerity. The subsequent section investigates the additional vulnerabilities faced by front-line workers in austerity-era outsourced custody suites, such as identity crises, unwanted media attention and a particular kind of prejudice from detainees. At the same time, however, this section emphasises how outsourcing can also enhance resilience against these vulnerabilities through improved training programmes and opportunities for career progression. The final section highlights the original contribution of the chapter by connecting issues of labour force vulnerability to extant scholarship on police outsourcing and the privatisation of criminal justice.