Staff Survey: 'Your Voice' poll shows two-thirds plan to leave their jobs within two years

Almost half of staff in the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) do not feel valued, while nearly one-third plan to leave within the next two years, a survey of more than 5,000 CPS employees revealed this week.


The annual 'Your Voice' survey found that 51% of staff were satisfied with their jobs, while 58% said they felt a sense of accomplishment in their work.


However, only 28% said that they felt valued, compared to 46% who did not. The longer staff had worked at the service, the less likely they were to feel valued, with operational lawyers, higher court advocates and caseworkers the most likely to feel unappreciated.


One-quarter of staff said they planned to leave the service in the next 12 months, while two-thirds expected to leave within two years.


Staff showed little confidence in senior management in the service. Some 44% said that the service is not well managed, compared to 26% who thought it was. Only 26% had confidence in senior managers, while 41% said they did not.


Slightly more than 40% of staff said they would recommend the CPS as a good place to work - lower than most government departments - and one-quarter of respondents said they would not encourage others to join.


Penny Palmer, Law Society Council member for the CPS, said: 'Leadership has always been a huge issue in the CPS, with staff feeling that the senior management are quite remote from the day-to-day business of the service, and are asking them to do things that they cannot necessarily do themselves [such as prosecuting in court]. There is a lot of dissatisfaction in the way that work is organised, due to the constant changes in working practices dictated by new legislation. But CPS staff are very committed, and feel what they do is socially relevant.'


A CPS spokeswoman said: 'Staff say that they feel better connected to the overall CPS strategy, that they understand how their individual objectives connect to their team's or area's overall strategy. The CPS is seen by its staff as an important part of the criminal justice system (CJS) which provides a quality service. The vast majority of staff feel that they have had the opportunity to improve the public perception of the CPS by doing their job well or working with CJS partners.'


She added: 'CPS managers and staff will be putting together action plans to address areas of concern that the survey has identified.'


Sue Gethin, CPS national convenor at public sector union FDA, said there was room for improvement in making staff feel more involved, and the union would be taking this forward with the CPS.