Met Police is hiring people on a rate equivalent to £39k-a-year to spot signs of racism in applicants – more than the £29k starting salary for officers
- Civilian assessors are paid £150-a-day plus expenses to run rule over candidates
- Those who get through the assessments are put on a starting salary of £29,000
- Critics call it ‘unreasonable’ to pay them ‘such huge sums’ compared to officers
- But Met Police say it is in ‘everyone’s best interest’ that it recruits ‘best officers’
‘Racism spotters’ helping to weed out policing candidates with intolerant views are being paid a higher rate than the beat-treading officers they help to employ.
The civilian assessors, who do not need specific qualifications for the role, are pocketing £150-a-day plus expenses to run the rule over candidates hoping to enter the Met Police.
If the part-time role, which requires a commitment of at least 25 days-a-year, was full-time, the assessors would receive an annual salary of around £39,000-a-year.
That’s significantly more than the £30,000 starting salary of a police constable in the Met Police – a daily salary of around £120 when counting the 253 working days in 2020.
Critics say it is ‘unreasonable’ to pay assessors ‘such huge sums’ compared to police officers.
But the Met Police has defended the use of assessors, saying it is ‘in everyone’s best interest that we attract, recruit and retain the very best officers’.
David Spencer, at the Centre for Crime Prevention, told the Sun: ‘The Met obviously shouldn’t be hiring officers who hold overtly racist views.
Civilian assessors, who do not need specific qualifications for the role, are pocketing £150-a-day plus expenses to run the rule over candidates hoping to enter the Met Police
‘But it is clearly an unreasonable use of public money to pay community assessors such huge sums when the basic salaries for police officers remain so low.’
Bosses at the Met Police hiked pay for assessors in 2018, raising it from £100 to £150-a-day.
The role was created in 2003, but Met Police chiefs promised to pour an extra £1million a year into the scheme two years ago as part of its plan to diversify.
Bosses said they planned to hire 200 more assessors and increase the existing day rate from £100 to £150, the Daily Express reported at the time.
A now closed job advert on the police’s recruitment website looking for 50 new assessors for the Met Police said it was looking for people with ‘life experience and an appreciation of diversity issues’.
It said: ‘When people apply to join the Met as a Police Officer or Special Constable, they undergo rigorous evaluation at assessment days.
‘It’s essential that our assessments receive specialist input, so that we’re seeking individuals with the right knowledge, skills and behaviours.
The Met Police has defended the use of assessors, saying it is ‘in everyone’s best interest that we attract, recruit and retain the very best officers’.
‘As a valued member of the community, you could become a trained ‘Community Assessor’ to help us carry out this vital work.’
The job advert asked candidates to commit to at least 25 days a year, including some Saturdays, and to be ‘flexible’ as the job was ‘sporadic’.
It added: ‘You’ll use your sound judgement to objectively assess and evaluate candidate performance against a set of competencies.
‘Then it’s a case of delivering constructive feedback with confidence and tenacity.’
The advert said candidates would be vetted and given training.
MailOnline has contacted the Met Police for a comment.
A spokesperson for the Met Police told the Sun: ‘To compare the day rate of casual workers with a salaried police constable, with the pension and allowances that attracts, is overly simplistic.’