Policing budget set at £211m
A £211m budget has been set for policing West Mercia with the police share of council tax increasing by nearly four per cent.
The 2018/19 budget has been confirmed by the region's Police and Crime Commissioner John Campion, who said rising inflation was behind the increase, along with the demand on police services.
Mr Campion said the budget would also protect the number of frontline PCs and PCSOs.
He said: “This budget ensures both short and long term challenges can be met while keeping council tax increases to a minimum. It ensures our police have the resources they need to meet changing demands while protecting the visible, neighbourhood policing our communities need.
“The necessary work to modernise West Mercia Police and the service it delivers to our communities will continue. Projects such as mobile working and body worn video have already been delivered and are helping deliver a more effective, efficient police service. This budget builds on that by ensuring a new state of the art control centre can be delivered this year, as well as changes to focus a greater proportion of police resources where they should be – in our communities.”
“I will also continue to invest in good services to help victims of crime cope and recover, and deliver a wide range of community projects to effectively tackle root causes of crime; projects which helped more than 12,000 people last year.”
The commissioner’s proposals were supported by the Police and Crime Panel at a meeting on Monday.
