POLICE Community Support Officers (PCSOs) across Warrington and Cheshire are facing redundancy as Cheshire Police bids to plug a £13m funding gap.
The aim is to reduced Cheshire funded PCSOs from 87 to 27.
Cheshire Police confirmed today it had launched an internal consultation on Monday of this week to help save £13m over the next four years through reducing PCSOs and redistributing warranted police officers into neighbourhood policing teams.
They say that since 2010, police forces across the UK have faced an increased funding gap. Cheshire Police has worked hard to achieve these savings, focusing on non-payroll expenses and scrutinising vacancy levels, in order to minimise the number of redundancies and protect front line policing and use of policing powers.
On Monday 17 November the Constabulary launched an internal consultation to reduce the number of PCSOs. Whilst they propose to reduce the numbers of PCSOs, these changes would put more warranted Police Officers into local policing teams, tackling the crimes that are impacting local communities.
A Cheshire Police spokesperson said: “We have a real focus on neighbourhood policing and are committed to preventing and tackling crime to keep our communities safe, but the changing nature of these crimes means that we now need to look at a different workforce design to meet these challenges.”
Following the launch of the consultation, Chief Constable Mark Roberts QPM said: “PCSOs make a significant contribution to our communities in Cheshire by maintaining visibility, gathering local intelligence and fostering relationships with residents in support of policing.
“Therefore, this is not a decision we take lightly, but a necessary one despite significant efforts of the force to secure appropriate levels of savings required to balance our budget this year.
“Cheshire Constabulary has faced significant financial challenges, with a cumulative reduction of £115m since 2008/09 and a further £13m in savings required by 2029. As we continue to be impacted by the legacy of austerity, we have got to look at ways of working differently.
“As part of these proposals, we have looked at re-designing our workforce to meet the challenges of modern-day policing, supported by having our highest ever number of police officers.
“These changes would put more warranted police officers in our local policing teams going forwards than we have had this year. These officers are equipped with the powers and training needed to tackle the crimes that are impacting our communities.
“The public have told us that they want more police officers on the streets tackling crime, and these proposals will support that work, whilst also supporting the government’s Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee.
“All of those impacted by the proposals will be provided with the appropriate support through this difficult period, and we will explore redeployment wherever possible.”
The 30 day consultation launched on Monday 17 November.
