FOI 24860

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST REFERENCE NO: HRC0024860/26

I write in connection with your request for information which was received on 6^th August 2026.  Please find below the response to your request:

Freedom of Information Request – Police Officer Sickness Absence by Age, 2025

Please provide the following information relating to police officers only for the calendar year 1 January 2025 to 31 December 2025.

I am seeking data for each of the following age groups:

• 25 years and under
• 26–40 years
• 41–55 years
• Over 55 years

1. Police officer headcount by age group

Please provide a separate police officer headcount for each of the four age groups listed above.

If readily available, please provide the average officer headcount during calendar year 2025 for each age group.

If average headcount is not readily available, please instead provide the officer headcount as at 31 December 2025, or the nearest standard workforce snapshot date available, stating the date used.

2. Working days lost to sickness absence by age group

Please provide the total number of working days lost to sickness absence during calendar year 2025, broken down separately by each of the four age groups listed above.

For the avoidance of doubt, I am requesting a separate total of working days or shifts lost to sickness for each age group, rather than a single force-wide total.

I am seeking working days or shifts actually lost due to sickness absence, rather than the number of sickness absence episodes or calendar days spanning periods of absence.

Alternative age bands

If the specified age bands cannot readily be provided from existing systems, please provide both the officer headcount and sickness absence information using the closest age bands routinely held or reportable by the force, ensuring that the same age bands are used for both datasets.

I would prefer the information in existing reportable age bands rather than requiring bespoke calculations or data manipulation solely to match the requested age groups.

Reply

1. Police officer headcount by age group
   
   Please provide a separate police officer headcount for each of the four age groups listed above.

officer headcount as at 31 December 2025

2. 
   Working days lost to sickness absence by age group
   
   Please provide the total number of working days lost to sickness absence during calendar year 2025, broken down separately by each of the four age groups listed above.