News
Budget Update for 2011/12
Dated: 16 Feb 2011
Northumbria Police Authority today agreed the police budget for the next 12 months.
The Authority has identified more than £57million worth of savings that have to be met within the next three years.
Temporary Chief Constable Sue Sim said: “There is no doubt as we have stated before that the financial climate we face is a challenging one.
“I remain fully committed to the delivery of frontline policing services to our communities and will maintain as far as possible the numbers of 24/7 response and neighbourhood teams, including CSO Patrol.
“At Northumbria we have a track record of excellence and I am determined that we should also continue to improve.
“I value the support of the Police Authority which has considered the reductions in grant and used reserve monies to support the force through a programme of change.
“It has already been announced that the force needs to reduce the police staff establishment by 450 posts by March 2012 and hope to do so through the Voluntary Redundancy Scheme.
“Following discussions today I can now confirm that the force needs to reduce by a further 375 police staff posts in the financial year 2012-13. This amounts to 825 posts by March 2013.
“We have already announced that we will reduce the police officer establishment by an estimated 164 posts through natural turnover between the start of the recruitment freeze and March 2012. We also estimate a further reduction of 154 police officer posts through natural turnover in the financial year 2012-13. This amounts to 318 posts by March 2013.
“We have been informed that CSO funding for the next two years has been guaranteed by central government and there is no intention to reduce overall CSO numbers during this time.
“Last year we began a series of business reviews to look at how we work to rid ourselves of any inefficiencies and reduce bureaucracy for officers.
“We have already identified ways to provide a more efficient service to the public.
“Our priorities remain the same - to reduce crime and disorder and to provide the service that our communities tell us they need and want.”