ACPO response to HMIC Valuing the Police report (3)

“This report recognises that the police service is rising to the challenge during this period of austerity, to close a funding gap of £2.5bn. All forces have delivered within budget for both years of the spending review so far. Chief Officers and all of their staff will continue to work hard to protect and prioritise frontline services, but those resources cannot be left untouched and numbers will continue to reduce.”

“The service is rightly proud that recorded crime is reducing, through the hard work of police officers and staff. However, the nature of the demand on the service is changing and in many areas, including very high risk areas of policing, that demand is increasing. This would include cyber crime, child sexual exploitation, vulnerable adult abuse and terrorism.

“Due to the changing nature of policing ACPO is concerned that more is being asked of neighbourhood officers, sometimes drawing them from preventative policing in order to preserve essential frontline response services.

“The big concern articulated by HMIC, which ACPO shares, is the sustainability of our current model of policing in the UK, which has inevitably been reduced as a result of cuts so far. Because further cuts in the future are expected, we will work really hard to transform the way we deliver policing services in this country.”

“Communities should be in no doubt that there is a determination among chief officers to work with Police and Crime Commissioners to continue meeting the challenge of delivering the best possible policing, keeping people safe and especially the most vulnerable members of society.”

ENDS

For more information please contact:

ACPO Press Office
Association of Chief Police Officers
e: press.office@acpo.pnn.police.uk