Billion-pound funding boost for police to keep streets safe

Police across England and Wales will be given a £1 billion boost, as the government takes action to restore neighbourhood policing and make our streets safer, the Home Secretary has announced.

Part of the government's Plan for Change, this will take total funding up to £19.5 billion for next year.

The majority of this funding – up to £17.4 billion and an increase of up to £987 million compared to last year – will be given to Police and Crime Commissioners, allowing them to tackle crime in their communities, rid town centres of antisocial behaviour and apprehend persistent offenders. This equates to a cash increase of up to 6.0% and a real-terms increase of 3.5%.

This money will include:

• £339 million more for the police core grant to help forces with general running costs and to be allocated by forces to tackle local priorities. This is significantly more than the £184 million rise announced last year.

• Costs arising from changes to National Insurance Contributions (NICs) will be covered in full, helping police to balance their budgets.

• New funding of £100 million to kickstart the recruitment of 13,000 additional neighbourhood officers, community support officers and special constables, as announced by the Prime Minister earlier this month.  

• £65 million more for the National and International Capital City (NICC) grant for the London forces, to recognise this has not kept pace with inflation and rising demands of policing the capital.

In addition to the money being given to Police and Crime Commissioners, the Home Office is also investing an extra £140 million for Counter-Terrorism Policing, ensuring that they have the resources they need to deal with the threats we face and protect the public from serious harm.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said:

“Today's settlement provides a substantial increase in funding for policing to help deliver on this government's Safer Streets mission. This vital funding boost will enable forces to kickstart the recruitment of neighbourhood police officers and crack down on the crimes blighting our high streets and town centres.

“We recognise the financial and operational challenges that police forces across the country have faced in recent years, and that is why we are providing a significant and much-needed increase in funding to help forces protect the public and keep our streets safe.

“We will also work closely with forces at a national and regional level to maximise efficiency and innovation, so that every penny they receive goes as far as possible and provides real value for the public.”

The provisional funding settlement will be central to the Prime Minister's Plan for Change and will help to deliver the manifesto pledge that policing will be reformed to deliver for communities.

The government will put an extra 13,000 police into our neighbourhoods, and dedicated police officers, who are visible, named and contactable, will support communities and work closely with residents and businesses.

The settlement also comes after the Home Secretary also announced a major package of police reform, including a new Police Performance Unit to track local performance and drive up standards, and a new National Centre of Policing to harness new technology and forensics.

Projects that sit within other national priorities are also being protected, including:

• £612 million to help modernise police forces, enhancing their ability to share data, intelligence and evidence with each other and law enforcement partners. This funding will be essential in tackling the increasingly tech-savvy criminals who wreak havoc on people and businesses.

• £50 million for Violence Reduction Units, delivering on the government's pledge to halve knife crime.

• £30 million to tackle the ongoing battle against serious organised crime through county lines routes.

Policing Minister Dame Diana Johnson said:

“We are determined to deliver for the people up and down this country and make good on our promise to reform policing, halve knife crime and tackle anti-social behaviour head on.

“This settlement aims to do just that, providing a significant and substantial increase in funding that will allow polices forces to get a grip on criminality, to make our streets and communities safer.”