More than 140 Welsh police officers have been dismissed and added to the barred list for breaching professional standards over the last six years, according to data from the College of Policing. In the most recent year (2025/26), 28 officers from Welsh forces were sacked and barred from policing.
Of these 28, 15 were from South Wales Police, eight from Gwent Police, four from North Wales Police, and one from Dyfed-Powys Police. The latest figures match the previous year (2024/25), which also saw 28 Welsh officers added to the list.
Six-Year Total and National Comparison
Across the last six years, a total of 144 Welsh officers have been placed on the barred list. Nationally, the Metropolitan Police and Greater Manchester Police recorded the highest number of dismissals and bars. The Met saw 195 officers barred in 2025/26, while Greater Manchester had 46.
In total, 757 officers from England and Wales were sacked and barred from policing in the last year, including for offences such as rape, child sex offences, and stalking. The barred list prevents officers who have been dismissed, or would have been dismissed, from re-entering policing in England and Wales.
Barred List History and Misconduct Cases
The barred list was introduced on December 15, 2017, and since then 3,591 officers have been placed on it. Since 2017, 88 South Wales Police officers have been added, along with 29 from North Wales Police, 45 from Gwent, and 20 from Dyfed-Powys Police.
In the last year, officers have been barred for sending inappropriate messages, misuse of police computer systems, possession of class A drugs, and in one case pursuing relationships with vulnerable witnesses. One South Wales Police officer was added to the list after using police computer systems to check records on her sister's new boyfriend and neighbours. Another officer crashed her Mercedes into bollards on a road's central reservation while in possession of cocaine.
A Gwent Police officer was struck off for sending "appalling and inappropriate" racist and homophobic text messages, and a senior South Wales Police officer was sacked for sending sexually inappropriate messages to a junior team member. Another former officer was banned after cheating on his wife with vulnerable women who had given him witness statements.
College of Policing Response
Director of Operational Standards at the College of Policing, ACC Arman Mathieson, said: "Policing is built on trust, and these figures show we will not hesitate to act when that trust is broken. 757 officers have been removed and barred from ever serving again, including those who retired or resigned while under investigation."
He added: "This represents 0.5% of all serving officers, with the vast majority of officers serving with courage, professionalism and integrity. We all deserve a service that roots out those who fall short. Where standards are breached, we will find out, and we will act."
The College of Policing noted that since the barred list was introduced in December 2017, 3,591 regular officers have been added in total, with the pace of dismissals accelerating: 757 officers were barred last year alone, more than in any single year since the list began, and over twice the annual average of the preceding four years.
