Armed forces and emergency services : Future trends

Legislation and policy

• Government legislation and funding policy will continue to play a major role in shaping the direction of the armed forces and emergency services sector.
• Following the spending review in October 2010 cuts have been scheduled for the police and armed forces. Police funding will be cut by 4% a year while current spending in defence will be reduced by 7%. The RAF and Royal Navy will lose 5,000 jobs and the Army will lose 7,000. The Ministry of Defence will also have job cuts and will lose around 25,000 civilian staff. This will all have implications on future recruitment.
• There is an increasing emphasis on partnership working throughout the sector. In the armed forces for example, the trend towards joint and multinational operations will see personnel working more closely alongside coalition allies and representatives from civilian government and non-governmental organisations.

Impact of science and technology

Advances in science and technology are changing the way the sector operates. Examples include:

• Hi-tech communications and information systems enabling police officers to spend more time engaging with people and less time tied up with paperwork.
• Cutting-edge science and technology used in organised crime and terrorism activity, for example in surveillance operations.
• Digitisation of the battlefield and Network Enabled Capability (NEC), which is expected to enable more efficient sharing and exploitation of information within the armed forces, MoD and coalition partners.
• Additional investment in new control room technology and ambulance vehicles to help further improve response times to urgent calls.

Science and technology will continue to play a key role and the need for graduates with specialist IT, communications and science skills is expected to increase.

Effect of demographic changes

• The challenges facing health services across the Western world, such as an ageing population and an increase in long-term medical conditions, are placing demands on ambulance services.
• Equal opportunities and sex discrimination legislation have removed some barriers for service by women in the armed forces and recruiters are seeing increased interest from females, particularly in professional roles such as doctor, dentist and engineers.
• The effect of immigration is impacting on the police service both directly, e.g. with increased need for translation services and indirectly, e.g. tensions between old and new communities.

Other developments

A new Public Services Diploma became available from selected providers in September 2010, and will be offered by a wide range of providers to all 14 to 19 year olds in England from 2013. It will give students a way into a range of careers in the public sector, including central and local government, the health service, the armed forces, the emergency services, the justice system and voluntary organisations.