As Nottinghamshire Police faces budget cuts, an assistant chief constable, who was in Newark this week, said he could give no assurances over the number of officers on the beat.
Assistant Chief Constable Paul Scarrott, left, and Inspector Steve Cartwright. (130710MW8-1)
Assistant Chief Constable Paul Scarrott said the force was seeking to make savings while trying to protect frontline staff, but there were no guarantees.
There were also no assurances over the future of police stations or contact points.
Nottinghamshire Police Authority anticipates £20m of savings must be made in 2011-12, and the chairman, this week, hinted at job cuts.
Mr Jon Collins said: “Of necessity there will be a different style of service delivery in the future, with the likelihood that we will have fewer officers, fewer staff and fewer premises.
“These changes, although they may be unpopular, will have to be made if we are to meet the funding reductions and balance the budget.”
It has been announced that Nottinghamshire, alongside all police authorities, will face budget cuts this year. There will also be cuts to public spending in future years, up to 2015, as the Government tackles the national deficit.
The Nottinghamshire force, which is being monitored by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC), has pledged to continue its improvement despite the cuts.
Mr Scarrott, one of two recently-appointed assistant chief constables, spent Tuesday afternoon on patrol in Newark.
In April 43 extra officers were transferred to B Division (Newark, Sherwood and Bassetlaw).
It followed an admission by senior police that the division was under-resourced and the finding of HMIC that crime in north Nottinghamshire wasn’t falling as quickly as in the rest of the county.
Asked if he could guarantee those officers would be staying, Mr Scarrott said: “I cannot offer that assurance. We will not walk out on our communities but apart from that there are no assurances.
“Whatever we do end up having to cut, Safer Neighbourhoods will be top of the list to be retained.”
Mr Scarrott was asked if the closure of police stations and contact points was discussed.
“We have had discussions with the police authority along those lines to see whether there are buildings we could do without,” he said.
“There will be changes but at the moment nothing can be determined with certainty because the one thing that we don’t know is the level of the cuts.
“With improvements in technology officers can be more visible on the streets without needing to return to a police station.
“It isn’t just about police stations. We can base ourselves in libraries, supermarkets. There will be shared locations.”
He said he would be happy to attend public meetings to discuss how the cuts would affect communities.
Mr Scarrott, whose role is to oversee and deliver local policing and citizen focus, said the public should take pride in Newark Police.
“I am impressed with the standard of the staff here and the work that they are doing to make people safer,” he said.
The Newark Police commander, Inspector Steve Cartwright, said: “Newark people should know that whatever the resources handed me by the command team, the Newark policing family will not shrink from the task.”
By Marc
if the chief counstable gave her £30000 bouns back she gave her self at christmas that would pay for an extra police officer along with all there other bouns for doing nothing
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