Frontline police jobs face axe: Over 1,400 offered redundancy over cuts
More than 1,400 frontline police staff have been offered redundancy because of savage funding cuts.
The Mail can exclusively reveal 1,451 "operational staff" have been sent letters offering redundancy packages.
It comes on the back of a similar offer made to 718 back office staff earlier this year.
The move means Humberside Police's entire 2,169 civilian workforce has been given the offer of voluntary redundancy.
A funding pot of £3.9m has been reserved to pay off PCSOs (police community support officers), scenes of crimes officers, civilian investigators and call centre staff.
Staff are expected to be lost from across East Yorkshire and northern Lincolnshire.
It is the latest sign of the huge strain looming Government cutbacks will have on policing in the region.
In particular, it shows the potential impact of frontline services, such as police patrols and responding to victims of crime.
However, chief constable Tim Hollis insisted the actual numbers to go would be "modest".
He said: "The offer of redundancy has now been made available to operational staff.
"This is because we know if the budget cut is as bad as we anticipate, we are going to have to reduce how many people we employ.
"Eighty per cent of our budget is people, so you can work it out for yourself.
"We are trying to do it in a very sensible, measured fashion, and trying to give our own staff, who are feeling very uncertain at the minute, a bit of certainty – it helps if people can choose to take redundancy if that suits them.
"But the numbers will be modest."
Last month, Mr Hollis exclusively revealed to Mail readers that if the coaltion Government reduced police funding by 25 per cent, then officer numbers would have to be cut and crime could rise.
However, it is feared the budget could even be cut by up to 40 per cent.
Mr Hollis said the purpose of voluntary redundancy would avoid the need for more "Draconian" measures further down the line.
But he admitted the move to offer redundancy to frontline staff was not ideal and said careful consideration would be given to each application.
"Because it is redundancy we are talking about, the post has to go, and that makes it more difficult and more delicate when you get into the operational posts, " he said.
"The cuts are already starting to impact on the service we deliver to our community.
"I would prefer not to have to look to operation staff, but doing this reduces the risk of having to make more Draconian decisions at a later stage. It is part of good management.
"Its a sensible part of the way we manage the business as we approach some challenging times ahead."
The force's 2,062 police officers are not included, as they cannot be made redundant.
24 Comments
View all
by Sierra, Westshire
Friday, September 03 2010, 8:13PM
“Bobby, the Beat
If they decimate the civillian staff, *and* get rid of the PCSOs, there *will be no* bobbies on the beat; neighbourhood policing will be a thing of the past; bobbies will be in offices answering telephones; and only the highest priority crimes will be attended to...
If Little Johnny is throwing berries at your windows, and you want service from a PC or PCSO, forget it. If your house has been burgled, you may even be lucky to get a crime number. If someone is being anti-social near your home at 2am, you will not get a response. There's barely enough staff now to cope, certainly not enough vehicles, and far far too much red tape.
These potential cuts are a sad day for this county... indeed this country. And, while I doubt that *all* the cuts will actually come about in reality, *any* cuts to frontline policing are too many.”
by colin, Willerby
Friday, September 03 2010, 8:12PM
“Chief constable Hollis is in my estimation at least guilty of being economical with the truth and at the worst, like many others in his position; dishonest.
Firstly will he explain clearly to the people of Hull precisely what measures i.e. internal cuts in expenditure, over the whole range of the machinery of running a police force he intends to make in order that as much as possible of the front line of community policing is protected. Then and only then could he form a plausible argument for having to make cuts to front line services. The nebulous statement that 80% (I think the figure quoted) of our budget is staffing has absolutely no meaning in any real accountancy terms, the figures can be moved around the balance sheet at will. Does he think that the knee jerk reaction of sending so many voluntary redundancy letters to the civilian staff makes them feel valued ? Whilst it may be a good scaremongering tactic for political ends it does little to provide evidence that the problem of coping with the necessary cuts has been carefully thought out to provide the most effective solution. Is he unaware of any waste of resources in the police force. Every single police officer and community support officer is a valuable member that needs the support of the people they protect, they deserve it and the evidence of the success of community policing is acknowledged by all. What this country desperately needs at Chief Constable level and above is people who can manage with the resources available to cut down waste, eliminate duplication, and above all be open and honest. Lions led by donkeys comes to mind”
by pete, hull
Friday, September 03 2010, 5:20PM
“Mike, if you read the article, it makes reference only to civilians being made redundant.
The civvies are on much less than serving officers so it will take at least 3 civvies to equal 2 serving officers in cash savings.”
by Neil Theasby, Sheffield
Friday, September 03 2010, 4:35PM
“Who the hell voted for the Condemns? Did those smarmy public school boys warn us that we'd see huge reductions in police numbers? We need more - not less for heaven's sake! The sooner we can oust the Condemns the better. They are out to ruin this country by strengthening the divide between the haves and have-nots.”
by PETER, EAST YORKSHIRE
Friday, September 03 2010, 3:55PM
“The Chief Constable wants to look at the waste of resources. At 9.30am outside of Asda, Hessle Road, there was at least four PCSO's setting up a "hut" for marking bicycles. Why does it require so many officers. One would do, plus some casual staff. On Wednesday I was in East Park, along with hundreds of other families picnicing on the grass. There was no sign of any trouble. Why does it require two officers to walk together through the park. One could have walked on one path and another elsewhere in the park. It's time the local constabulary acquired some management skills on knowing what the staff are actually doing and achieving.”