Police force to cut 60 jobs in bid to save £12.3m

Temporary Chief Constable Maggie Blyth said the next 12 months were going to be tough

A police force is to cut 60 staff jobs in a bid to save £12.3m over the next year.

Gloucestershire Constabulary said it would also transfer its mounted capability to West Midlands Police, redeploying its mounted officers.

"The next 12 months are going to be tough and involve some really difficult choices," said temporary Chief Constable Maggie Blyth.

The cuts, which include reducing the number of Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs), come as the force announced plans to expand its neighbourhood policing capacity using government funds.

Gloucestershire Police is expecting funding from the government as part of its Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee.

"However, this will be ring-fenced for neighbourhood policing so it won't assist us with the savings we need to make," said Ms Blyth.

The chief constable explained that, despite the cuts, from April the county would see more police officers in both urban and rural areas.

"In having more on the streets of Gloucestershire, we can respond to and investigate crimes that people are most affected by," she added.

Gloucestershire Police said it also planned to reduce its number of PCSOs

Ms Blyth said the Gloucestershire Rapid Improvement Plan aimed to bring "financial and organisational stability".

As part of the organisational changes, the force said it would form an updated Neighbourhood service and fill vacancies that would help to bolster its investigations.

Ms Blyth explained her team was facing the "changing nature of crime", with 20% of all recorded crime in the county domestic abuse-related and the force receiving 300 referrals a year about online child abuse images.

"At the same time [we are] dealing with anti-social behaviour, drugs, burglary," she added.

Gloucestershire Police has saved £3.3m in the current financial year but next year it needs to save £12.3m

While the force will be losing some PCSOs, Ms Blyth said a "significant number" would be retained as they were "integral" to neighbourhood policing, providing a "valuable link with residents, businesses and other partners".

Speaking about the cuts, the acting chief constable said: "As painful as these decisions are - and we know they will have an impact on individuals and teams - they are the only way we can ensure the force's long-term financial stability."

Ms Blyth added that the plan was "focused on maintaining police officer numbers on our front line to be sure that we continue to answer 999 calls, investigate crime and be there when you need us".