Panel backs PCC’s plan to increase police strength by more than 300

• Gloucestershire’s Police and Crime Panel today backed the PCC’s recommendation for an extra £1.25 per month in council tax to pay for more growth in local policing
• The increase will add £15 to the annual bill for a Band D taxpayer and raise an extra £5.8m
• It will enable the Constabulary to balance its books and enable the Chief Constable to invest in more than 300 officers, staff and essential equipment
• A £15 rise for the next financial year is less than 30p per week, and at 5.4% is just half the current rate of inflation
• Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Chris Nelson said, “Providing the Chief Constable with the resources he needs is one of my biggest responsibilities, and the main reason why I recommended an increase in council tax for a Band D property of £15 this year”.

Gloucestershire’s Police and Crime Panel today unanimously backed Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Chris Nelson’s plans for an increase in council tax that will help pay for more police.

 It will add £15 to this year’s council tax bill for an average band D householder and raise an extra £5.8m.

64% of households in the County are in Bands A-C for Council Tax purposes, so the majority will actually pay less than the £15.00 extra.

Spread across the next financial year, a £15 rise works out at less than 30p per week, and at 5.4% is just half the current rate of inflation. But, the PCC told panel members, it would enable the Chief Constable to recruit more officers, police staff and equipment.

Mr. Nelson said, “Planning this budget has been a challenge in the current financial climate and I am grateful for the police and crime panel’s endorsement. Providing the Chief Constable with the resources he needs is one of my biggest responsibilities, and the main reason I recommended an increase in council tax for a Band D property of £15 this year.

“This rise will help fund over 300 more officers and police staff. Throughout the year I will continue to review every opportunity to work with the Chief Constable to increase officer numbers further by assessing the efficiency of every process undertaken throughout the organisation.

“Our goal is to seek out efficiencies wherever we can find them, and identify new sources of funding, in order to make the Constabulary the biggest and most effective it has ever been.

“That will require improved efficiency and productivity, which is something I am regularly reviewing with the Chief Constable, to make sure this much needed investment goes as far as it can.”

The cost of policing in Gloucestershire is split almost equally between the Government and local tax payers, with 51% of its funding coming through central taxation and 49% through council tax.

The Budget for 2023/24, which covers the period April-March, will provide the resources to deliver the Police and Crime Prevention Plan

When the PCC’s office conducted a survey asking the public for its perception of crime in their communities, while most people said they felt safe or very safe, the majority of those who responded said the police were under-funded.

Many wanted to see more spent on recruiting extra officers, improving the criminal justice system, attending, solving and fighting crime.

The Police and Crime Prevention Plan is the PCC’s strategic plan for ensuring Gloucestershire remains a safe place to live, work and visit:

The six priorities in his Plan are

• Creating Safer Communities
• Tackling violence against women and girls
• Strengthening your Constabulary
• Targeting the causes of crime
• Supporting Victims and reducing reoffending
• Empowering local communities