Yesterday I received a letter from Chris Philps MP, the Policing Minister. It contained the good news that the Conservative Government had agreed to my request to provide the funding for additional police officers in Leicestershire & Rutland.
This being government money, there were strings attached. For a start we received the funding for only three extra officers, but it would be churlish to complain ab out that. Every little helps, as they say.
More problematic is that the payment covers the basic pay of a police constable. As the new officers gain experience and proficiency in different specialisations they gain extra pay - as is quite right. However, the government funding does not cover these increases in pay, but only the basic pay. So as time passes the Leicestershire Police budget will actually be out of pocket on the deal.
Second, the government proposes to take a snapshot of our police officer numbers on 30 September this year and on 31 March next year. If we don't have the required total number of officers on either date we won't get the money. Fair enough, I suppose. But the problem with such snapshot dates is that it would take only a couple of officers to unexepectedly resign for some reason on 29 September and we would not have time to recruit replacements before the government snapshot and we would lose the additional funding despite having been paying the additional offices in the meantime.
The other problem is that central government counts the number of police officers that we have in terms of "headcount", while the Leicestershire Police count in terms of "full time equivalents". Because we believe in flexible working for those who have caring or other commitments, this means that the Leicestershire Force always has considerably more "headcount" officers than we do "full time equivalents".
Like a gift from the gods in Greek mythology, a gift from government is not always what it seems.
Nevertheless, I have decided to take the gift and recruit the additional officers.
The letter from Mr Philps reads as follows:
Dear PCC Rupert Matthews and Chief Constable Rob Nixon,
Home Office: Additional recruitment scheme 2023/24 – Outcome of evaluation.
Thank you for your expression of interest in the additional recruitment scheme.
Based on our assessment of deliverability, I am pleased to confirm that your force will be asked to recruit 3 officers in addition to your maintenance headcount. For clarity the following table summarises your total headcount requirement for September and March 2023/24:
Headcount
Allocation Target Headcount
Maintenance Headcount
(baseline + total uplift N/A 2,295
allocation
2023/24 Additional
recruitment allocation 3 2,298
The 2,295 officers you are required to maintain (maintenance headcount1 ), are subject to the terms of the ringfenced grant for 2023/24.
Regarding the additional recruitment, your force would be eligible for a payment of £45,000 per officer recruited above your force’s maintenance headcount (baseline plus total three-year allocation) in 2023/24 up to a maximum of 3 officers (£135,000). The Home Office would make payment at two points in the year (January and July 2024) based on individual force performance in achieving over recruitment commitments by the end of September 2023 at the end of March 2024. At the January payment point you will be eligible for £15,000 per officer recruited with the remaining £30,000 per officer recruited paid in July.
I would ask that your recruitment profiles are amended to reflect the additional recruitment allocation for 2023/24 in your March tracker return due to be 1 Maintenance headcount as defined in the Grant Agreement for the officer Maintenance grant. submitted to the programme in April 2023. The Home Office and National Police Chiefs’ Council will continue to review progress in maintaining officers and any additional recruitment on a monthly basis with a view to providing support activity as required or seeking to reallocate officers funded through the additional recruitment scheme. If we were to reallocate officers, then this opportunity will be made available to all forces.
Whilst I would like to see the 3 officers funded through additional recruitment allocation maintained in 2024/25, I recognise that this is at force discretion and subject to local budgetary management. I am grateful to you for your continued efforts and leadership shown in working towards delivering the Police Uplift Programme and now in maintaining officer numbers. This will significantly support your local communities and keep the public safe.
Rt Hon Chris Philp MP Minister of State for Crime, Policing and Fire
