Agenda item

To receive a verbal update from Chief Constable Catherine Roper on the financial pressures facing Wiltshire Police.

If you would like to submit a question in advance of the meeting, please email areaboards@wiltshire.gov.uk.

Chief Constable Catherine Roper gave an update about the financial pressures facing Wiltshire Police. Points included:

·       Wiltshire Police were facing a £6.8 million budget shortfall in 2025/26. £1.6 million of the required savings had already been identified.

·       A financial review was underway to find the rest of the required savings, which would look at the force’s estate and vehicle requirements. The last option to be looked at for efficiency savings would be staffing and the force had a commitment not to reduce the number of police officers.

·       No police station with a front counter would be closing.

·       The Chief Constable was committed to improving the level of service provided to the public despite the financial challenges facing the force.

During the discussion about Wiltshire Police’s financial situation, points included:

·       The Area Board thanked the Chief Constable for her update and recognised the financial pressures facing the force.

·       Wiltshire Police had received additional funding, but the financial shortfall was created by an increase in other pressures, such as meeting pay awards, an increase in employer National Insurance contributions and measures needed to comply with new dangerous dog legislation.

·       The force were looking at ways to use their estate more effectively, including through use of their mobile police stations.

·       The Chief Constable believed that proposed reductions in the number of vehicles used by Wiltshire Police would not have an operational impact.

·       The mid-term financial plan had been written covering the next three financial years, to ensure that the level of service, and specialist kit required, could be provided.

Other points raised included:

·       Thanks were given to the police for the work that they were doing in keeping people safe.

·       The Vice-Chairman highlighted that he had noticed an increase in the presence of the police in rural areas.

·       The Chairman stated that she was sympathetic to the cost pressures facing the police, such as National Insurance.

·       Chief Constable Roper explained that Wiltshire Police should look and feel closer to communities and invited suggestions about events where neighbourhood teams could meet the public. The police were open to engagement in a variety of settings to improve visibility, such a recent visit by the Chief Constable to a dementia group in Calne.

·       The Vice-Chairman suggested that the police would be very welcome at the National Farmers Union breakfast and offered to make further enquiries.

·       A number of recent arrests had been made for hare coursing.

·       Shiela Glass, Chairman of Ramsbury and Axford Parish Council, reported that three vehicles had been abandoned on land owned, or leased, by the parish council and highlighted the parish council’s frustrations with the process for removing vehicles left on private land.

·       A number of obstacles to removing the vehicles were highlighted, including that it had not been possible to obtain details about the owners from the DVLA due to data privacy requirements and being provided with the incorrect forms. It had also not been possible to track the issue despite it being reported on the MyWilts App.

·       In response, Inspector Simon Garrett recognised the complexity of removing vehicles from private land. He explained that the police could check the registrations to see if the vehicles had been used for criminal activity and highlighted that it was an offence to abandon a vehicle. Inspector Garrett offered to ring the parish council on Thursday to provide further information.

·       The Chairman of Ramsbury and Axford Parish Council explained that she had reported a previous case when a vehicle was abandoned on a highway with a fake numberplate. Although the police had not been able to take further action on that occasion, Wiltshire Council had removed the vehicle. She stated that she would welcome the option to pay a reasonable fee to remove vehicles abandoned on private land. 

·       Lisa Farrell from Marlborough Area Youth Forum explained that they would welcome visits from the police to Marlborough Community Centre to emphasise the danger that could be caused by drugs.

·       Details of significant prosecutions for County Lines drug offences would be included in the Chief Constable’s fortnightly letter to the Police and Crime Commissioner. Inspector Garrett also added that there had been three, relatively low level, arrests for drug offences in the local area over the past three months.

·       County Lines was an issue in Marlborough but was less prevalent than in most areas of the county. Emphasis was placed on supporting young people that might be at risk of drug taking by focussing on education and rehabilitation.

·       A neighbourhood harm reduction unit helped to empower officers to make good decisions.