GMP to recruit 264 more neighbourhood officers but will lose 300 PCSO roles
20.03.2023 - 18:35
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
Greater Manchester Police is to lose more than fifty percent of its PCSOs to finance the recruitment of more neighbourhood police officers. PCSO roles will be lost by vacancies not being filled.
The announcement was made today by Chief Constable Stephen Watson and the region's Mayor, Andy Burnham.
Over 260 more neighbourhood police officers will be brought in under a new model, which the force say will help "make communities safer, fight crime and solve local problems – like burglary, speeding and drug dealing". They have been hailed by Mr Burnham as the "most significant change to policing in a generation and one that will command huge public support".
To fund the changes, a Neighbourhood Policing Review briefing obtained by the Manchester Evening News reveals that the number of PCSOs will be reduced by 333, from 518 to 215. There will be one named PCSO per council ward under the new model.
The briefing adds: "Savings made by reducing PCSO numbers will be invested in a further 264 warranted neighbourhood police officers. This figure will be achieved through natural attrition over time. No jobs will be lost."
READ MORE: Emergency services seal off road after building collapses
It adds: "PCSOs form a large part of our Neighbourhood Teams and we acknowledge the tremendous hard work they have undertaken during some of GMP's most difficult days to maintain visibility in communities whilst neighbourhood police officers were taken away to deal with responses to other issues."
But it says: "A disparate use of the PCSO resource throughout the force has become diluted and misunderstood over time," adding that there is a "significant imbalance of PCSOs to police officer numbers, 54 percent PCSOs to 46 percent."
In addition, the
The website popstar.one is an aggregator of news from open sources. The source is indicated at the beginning and at the end of the announcement. You can
send a complaint on the news if you find it unreliable.