The government has today confirmed the police officer recruitment targets for every police force in England and Wales for 2020-21.
Cumbria’s Police and Crime Commissioner, Peter McCall and Constabulary Chief Constable, Michelle Skeer respond to today’s announcement from the Home Office.
Police and Crime Commissioner, Peter McCall said: “This is of course excellent news and I’m pleased to see the government start to deliver on the commitment to police officer numbers. I welcome the additional 51 police officers that Cumbria will be receiving in this, the first of three phases of officer increases.
“These additional police officers will be dedicated to our frontline and will be out in our communities fighting crime and the Chief Constable and her team will be working with us to determine how best they can be deployed, to have the best effect for our communities.
“We are already well ahead with an additional nine police officers being recruited and started training in August and further increased intakes in November. The first batch of newly trained police officers will be out on our streets and in our communities in the New Year, the first in the country.
“This is an exciting time for policing. Only last week we shared the details of what the additional ten pro-active police officers in West Cumbria funded from increased council tax have achieved over a 12 month period with more than 200 arrests. Added to the 45 extra officers over the last 18 months and this 51, I hope that both residents and our hard pressed officers will really start to feel the effect of a much needed and overdue increase in resource, and I will continue to fight our corner for even more to come, making our communities in Cumbria safer.”
Chief Constable Michelle Skeer said: “We welcome the announcement that Cumbria has been allocated 51 additional Police Officers as part of the first year’s allocation of a three year programme to increase the number of Police Officers nationally by 20,000.
“This much needed investment will help our officers and staff who work tirelessly to keep our communities safe, protect the vulnerable in our community and prevent crime.
“We are keen for our Officers, Staff and Communities to see the impact of the additional officers as soon as possible and we have already recruited an additional 9 Officers in our August intake, will be taking on an additional 18 Officers in November, and we’re considering an additional intake of 18 officers in January.
“Recruiting these additional Police Officers, on top of our normal recruitment presents a challenge for our Officers and Staff in supporting them with their comprehensive training plan, however, this is welcome challenge for us to have and I am confident we will have recruited the additional 51 Police Officers by March 2021.
“Policing is a hugely rewarding career where you get to make a real, positive difference. We welcome anyone to apply who shares our passion for serving the community, details of recruitment events and how to apply can be found by visiting www.cumbria.police.uk.”
