Police recruitment: Northamptonshire force to recruit 200 officers

Office numbers in Northamptonshire are due to rise to 1,310, thanks to the recruitment drive

An "ambitious recruitment campaign" will see over 200 police officers recruited in the next two years.

Northamptonshire Police said, after retirements and other departures, it would mean at least 100 more officers on the streets.

The extra officers will be paid for by a budget increase of £11m, to almost £130m, the highest in 20 years.

The force said the extra officers would mean that police would now be able to visit everyone whose home was burgled.

Chief constable Nick Adderley said the "ambitious recruitment campaign" would bring officer numbers to 1,310, the highest the force has had since 2010.

"Every penny of the additional funding will be spent improving frontline services to allow greater visibility and accessibility," he said.

"A more robust policing approach will be adopted to ensure that our county becomes a hostile environment for criminals."

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Experienced investigators are to be brought back into the force to mentor new and less experienced officers.

The force said it would strengthen neighbourhood policing and that PCSO and police staff numbers had also been protected.

The rise is being funded in part through a council tax precept increase of £24 a year for a band D household.

Police, fire and crime commissioner Stephen Mold said government funding had not kept pace with the demand for policing

Without that, the force would have been unable to afford the new officers, the county's police, fire and crime commissioner Stephen Mold said.

"I am not happy that government funding has not kept pace with the growth in demand in this county", he said.

The Home Office said: "We are ensuring the police have the resources they need to carry out their vital work.

"Funding for policing will increase by over £1bn this year, including council tax and the new fund to tackle serious violence. This is the biggest increase in police funding since 2010."