Police jobs on the line in bid to save £6.6m

JOBS are set to be axed at Staffordshire Police after the force was told to save an extra £6.6million.

Staff are already being consulted over possible changes to the locations and opening times of public service desks at police stations and community buildings across the county following the financial bombshell.

It comes after the Government told police forces to contribute more to employee pension schemes. That means Staffordshire Police must find an extra £2.6 million in 2018/19, and a further £4 million in 2019/20.

Chief Constable Gareth Morgan said: “This will undoubtedly mean reducing our overall headcount further, resulting in an impact on front-line policing.

“This matter has been raised with the Government by police forces and police and crime commissioners across the country and discussions are being held.

“As part of our continuous review of operational policing across Staffordshire, we are currently consulting with a number of our staff about options being considered around the locations and opening hours of front office counters.

“This does not affect police officers and it will not affect the policing of local areas.

“Each year a significant number of officers retire or leave the force to progress their careers for other reasons, and it is important that we continue to recruit new officers to enable us to maintain an effective policing service to keep communities safe.”

On Sunday, Mr Morgan said on social media: “@Staffspolice no longer able to use overtime for preplanned events. Therefore cancelled rest days for some to cover football yesterday. Know the impact this has and I’m sorry to colleagues and families.”

Matthew Ellis, Staffordshire Commissioner for Police, Fire and Rescue and Crime, said: “Finances for local policing are insufficient, despite a greater contribution from local people through council tax bills.” Union leaders have warned morale among Staffordshire officers is ‘low.’ because they are regularly seeing rest days cancelled at short notice due to a lack of numbers.

Staffordshire Police Federation chairman Keith Jervis said: “This has been a really difficult six months with internal changes, pressure from the Donald Trump visit and also the World Cup. I think officers feel worn down at the moment, and the sense of goodwill you always get with officers is going.

“The force has to find a lot of money and that has put a significant strain on the budget.”