Northamptonshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Stephen Mold has asked for an increase of around 50p a week towards the policing part of the council tax – £24 a year for a band D household – to fund improvements in policing in Northamptonshire.
This is the second year in a row that the police budget has increased and means that the operational policing budget in 2019/20 is £130 million – up £11.6 million since 2018/19 and almost £20m since 2017.
PFCC Stephen Mold said that £3 million of this will be specifically ring-fenced to be spent on improving police visibility and service in areas that you have told him are a priority.
Improvement plans will be announced by Stephen and Chief Constable Nick Adderley in April, and will include:
- A significant investment in neighbourhood policing, including more dedicated police officers and staff
- An improved response for victims of burglary and a renewed focus on the prevention and detection of crimes
- Additional resources to tackle crime and bolster the rural crime teams to support policing in rural areas
- Greater focus on tackling street level drug dealing and anti-social behaviour
This will build on additional funding given in the previous two years, including for the investigation of domestic abuse and sexual offences and the funding of an additional 50 frontline police officers and staff.
Stephen said that the decision to ask for the full increase suggested by the Government was difficult, even though 58% of people who responded to the budget consultation said they would pay more for policing.
“It is my duty to make sure that the Chief Constable has the resources to keep Northamptonshire safe and provide our residents with the service they rightly expect.
“I will make sure that this increase leads to a better service for local people and I will be working with the Chief Constable to demonstrate how improvements are being made.”
