Plans to recruit officers through transfers from other forces won’t impact on current teams, Greater Manchester Police has pledged.

A major recruitment drive to get people to transfer for specialist roles had led to anger from existing officers who argued they could be passed over for promotions despite having worked hard in challenging times.

GMP is recruiting across multiple specialisms – including roads policing and detectives – and applicants transferring can pick any specialism, any location and any role.

But officers already with the force, particularly those kept in roles where there is a staff shortage, had complained they were being denied the chance to go for coveted jobs such as armed response units.

The force’s Federation Chair Lee Broadbent claimed his members were being denied the chance to develop their careers and felt there was a lack of opportunity.

He told Police Oracle: “It’s like when mobile phone companies only make their best offers to new customers."

But the force said its current officers were crucial to getting performance back on track after being rated inadequate by HM Inspectorate last year. GMP’s leadership were aware of concerns from officers.

The force currently has 2,000 fewer police officers and 1,000 fewer support staff after a decade of cuts.

Part of the turn around plan for the force includes increased driver training capacity and re-opening of a major custody centre.

And this means there are opportunities for serving GMP officers, according to Laura Shuttleworth, Director of Strategic Resourcing.

She said: "All of our officers are crucial and equally important in helping us restore trust and confidence and to deliver really great policing across Greater Manchester.

"We are dedicated to keeping them in the force and offering them with opportunities for progression,” she added.

Officers eager to progress were advised to follow established procedures and research internal jobs boards for potential roles.

"Any officer within GMP that is looking to progress or transfer departments is asked to speak with their line manager or district commander. There are also agreed plans for promotions at all levels and all the dates have been published on the GMP Intranet,” she added.

"In addition, we regularly advertise specialist roles on our internal recruitment portal to ensure that our own dedicated officers have the opportunity to move into the areas they are passionate about."