“Good” South Yorkshire praised by HMIC inspectors
SOUTH Yorkshire Police is “on track to make all of the savings it needs over the period of the spending review”, HM Inspectorate of Constabulary has said.
The force has had to save £49.2 million over the past four years – between March 2011 and March 2015 – and according to HMIC is on course to meet this challenge. Police officer numbers in the force are down 11 per cent over this period.
In an HMIC report “Policing in Austerity – Meeting the Challenge” – the HMIC has examined how forces across England and Wales have responded to the impact of £2.5bn of austerity cuts.
The HMIC states: “South Yorkshire Police is on track to meet its financial challenge for the spending review. It continues to develop plans to address future austerity challenges and central to this will be extending collaboration with other forces.”
HMIC inspectors rate the force as “good” when it comes to “securing the financial position for the short and long term”, having an “affordable way of providing policing”, “being efficient” and “providing value for money.”
Neil Bowles, chairman of South Yorkshire Police Federation, said: “I am pleased that HMIC report that South Yorkshire Police plans are now on target, this is certainly a different picture to last autumn when the same managers and leaders were leading us into special measures!
“This is obviously down to tremendous hard work of all our members and colleagues.”
According to the HMIC, the number of South Yorkshire Police officers, PCSOs and staff working on the front line is projected to reduce by 436 between March 2010 and March 2015 (from 3,918 to 3,482).
In terms of savings plans for 2014/15 and 2015/16, HMIC states “South Yorkshire Police has developed savings plans to achieve the £12.9m savings needed in 2014/15 and £13.5m needed in 2015/16.”
It adds: “Although there is some risk to savings plans beyond 2016, HMIC is reassured that the force is working hard to find ways of cutting spending while protecting neighbourhood policing and fighting crime.”
Looking to the future, HMIC states “future savings will be increasingly dependent on the review of local policing and increased collaboration.”
It added: “Of central importance to savings for 2016/17 and beyond is extending existing collaborations with other forces in the Yorkshire and Humber region. Work is underway to develop the detail of this.
“HMIC welcomes the force’s ambition, but there is a lot to be agreed before this becomes a reality. The force will need to monitor closely progress and might wish to identify back-up plans in the event of delays or other difficulties.
“The force has seen a reduction in overall crime over the spending review, although this has been at a lower rate than for England and Wales. Overall crime levels remain higher than the figures for England and Wales. It is important that while South Yorkshire implements further changes, it keeps a strong focus on crime fighting and protecting its communities from harm.”
Across the country, HMIC – led by Tom Winsor (pictured) has raised “serious concerns” over the erosion of neighbourhood policing and the viability of some police forces in England and Wales.
It states a similar round of spending cuts repeated in the future would put some smaller police forces – 18 in total – in jeopardy within the next three to five years.
Mr Bowles warned that the people of South Yorkshire will soon “begin to see what these cuts actually mean to them”
He added: “When we say sorry we cannot attend that; when we do not have the staff to investigate their crime; when sickness levels rise due to stress and pressure.
“The figures confirm that South Yorkshire is one of the worst funded forces in the country. The statistics relating to the proportion of frontline staff, are totally misleading.
“In 2010 we had more frontline officers, than we have in total now – how can that possibly be spun as a positive? What is so important about the frontline anyway? If you cannot support the frontline they will fail.”
You can see the full South Yorkshire report here http://www.hmic.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/south-yorkshire-responding-to-austerity.pdf