Non-graduate entry a retrograde step for the police professionalisation agenda?

Since its inception the College of Policing has promoted policing as a profession and it has established a code of ethics, a body of knowledge and graduate entry in pursuit of its ambition. The graduate entry programme has been the subject of criticism and in response a non-graduate entry route has been introduced. Graduate entry is fundamental to most professions and this change could undermine the professionalisation agenda. This article uses a series of focus groups to compare the views of probationary officers from graduate and non-graduate training programme to assess the impact of the graduate entry programme on student officers. While the research found many similarities between the cohorts. IPLDP students expressed a greater affinity with the role of police as crime fighters than their graduate peers. While the graduate students were concerned about limitations on their ability to use their discretion and the extent of their autonomy.