Hampshire police plan for extra 300 officers in Home Office 20,000 uplift

POLICE bosses are hopeful for an extra 300 officers when the government hands out more funding in a 20,000 country-wide uplift.
Police and crime commissioner for Hampshire Michael Lane. Picture: Sarah Standing (050319-2248)Police and crime commissioner for Hampshire Michael Lane. Picture: Sarah Standing (050319-2248)
Police and crime commissioner for Hampshire Michael Lane. Picture: Sarah Standing (050319-2248)

Hampshire police has a current establishment figure - the number of officers there should be in the force - of 2,971.

The Home Office has already allocated enough money for the force to recruit 156 officers in the first 12 months of a three-year nationwide recruitment plan.

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But now budget papers due to be discussed on Friday reveal police here hope they will be allowed 300 in years two and three combined.

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Chief constable Olivia Pinkney's force is already on course to recruit 250 police by the end of 2020/21 - an extra 94 than they have the cash for now.

This is because the force is hopeful it will receive money for more police in the second year of the uplift.

A report for the Hampshire police and crime panel meeting in Andover said: ‘It should be noted that there is a significant lead time to recruiting, vetting and training police officers so it is important to start the recruitment as soon as possible in order to see the performance results that will be expected from the additional officers.’

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As reported, members of the panel, largely made up of elected councillors, will vote on crime commissioner Michael Lane’s plan for a £10-a-year increase per household in the policing precept of Hampshire’s council tax.

The report added: ‘In the absence of information as to our future allocation, it has been prudently assumed that Hampshire could receive a further 150 officers uplift in 2020/21 and the same again in 2021/22, a total additional increase of 300 over and above the 156 increase for 2020/21.’