Report highlights risk of losing frontline officers due to cuts

Fears that Lincolnshire Police could lose officers from the “thin blue line” because of cash constraints have been backed up in a new report.

Lincolnshire Chief Constable Neil Rhodes and Police and Crime Commissioner Alan Hardwick have welcomed a report by HMIC (Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary) which suggests that current staffing levels cannot be sustained without additional funding being made available.
The report praises the force’s “robust” financial management, recognises its cost-efficient outsourcing and collaboration efforts and says it makes good use of its resources to meet demand.
The report also recognises the well-established work taking place with local organisations to address safeguarding and prevention activity.
But Mr Hardwick said the report also recognises that officer numbers cannot be maintained without money.
He said: “They also say, quite rightly, we have a high reliance on local funding. It is therefore essential that the new Home Office funding formula delivers a fairer, more transparent and sustainable model that will ensure better outcomes for Lincolnshire and communities across the country.”
Mr Hardwick and Mr Rhodes have been at the forefront of calls for a fairer funding formula.
The current formula sees Lincolnshire get one of the lowest police spends nationally.
Mr Rhodes said: ““We have long supported the reform of the current complex and opaque police funding formula that the Government is currently carrying out.
“We have actively and constructively informed the debate about the development of new arrangements which are needed to maintain acceptable standards of policing in Lincolnshire.”
But Mr Hardwick and Mr Rhodes both said they disagreed with the HMIC report’s suggestion that the force requires mprovement in terms of how efficient it is at keeping people safe and reducing crime.
He said: “Crime has continued to reduce, we have one of the highest workloads per officer and we remain the lowest cost police force of any in England and Wales.
“That looks like an efficient police force to me.”
Neil Rhodes said: “We have an approach that works in Lincolnshire; performance is very strong, costs are enviably low.
“In our last assessment HMIC judged us as outstanding in terms of our provision of affordable policing.
“The focus is now on the Government to implement a fair financial settlement that will mean we can maintain it for many years to come.”