This will provide a central and transparent database, where
members of the public can go to see how their local Police
and Crime Commissioner (PCC) is managing their funding.
In March 2017, the police collectively held over £1.6
billion in usable resource reserves, which compares to £1.4
billion in 2011. There are wide variations between areas,
from Gwent holding 42% of their annual funding in reserves
to Northumbria holding under 7%.
The Minister for Policing and the Fire Service is also writing to PCCs,
setting out new guidance which asks them to publish
reserves strategies on their websites.
Reserves strategies should make clear how much of the
funding held falls into the following 3 categories:
- funding earmarked for planned expenditure during the
current medium-term financial plan
- funding earmarked for specific projects beyond the
current planning period
- funding held as a general contingency or resource to
meet other expenditure needs (for example, insurance)
PCCs should set out, in a way that is clear and accessible
to members of the public, how the level of general
contingency reserve has been set and the detail of
activities or items to be funded from each earmarked
reserve.
Minister for Policing and the Fire Service said:
Police reserves are an important tool for police leaders
to fund projects and manage financial risk, but we also
need to ensure there is real transparency about how they,
as taxpayers’ money, are being used to improve the
service delivered to the public.
I’ve asked PCCs to set out their reasons for holding
funds in reserve, so that the public can have a clearer
picture of how their money is being spent on policing.
The measures follow a period of engagement in 2017, in
which the minister spoke to every force in the country
about the demands they face, and how these can best be
managed, including making best use of financial reserves.
The publication of reserves comes as the government
confirms its plans to increase police funding by up to £450
million in 2018/19. The minister has been clear that police
need to improve productivity and efficiency and make
effective use of financial reserves to tackle the changing
nature of crime.
You can read details of reserves
held by each PCC since 2011.
