By Joe Locker, Local Democracy Reporter
The number of Nottinghamshire Police officers working full-time across the county is still lower than just over a decade ago despite a number of recruitment drives.
In April, the Government reported on the outcomes of its three-year pledge to
recruit 20,000 extra police officers across the country by March 2023, as part of the Police Uplift Programme.
Nottinghamshire Police set a target of recruiting 357 officers by headcount.
The report, which was discussed during a Nottinghamshire Police and Crime Panel meeting on June 5, showed 418 new officers were appointed over three years, which the force said significantly exceeded its target of 357.
This has brought the force’s officer headcount figure to 2,439.
However, Gedling Borough councillor David Ellis (Lab), the vice-chairman of the panel, says a distinction should be made between the number of officers by headcount and the number of full time or equivalent (FTE) officers.
He noted the force was simply “back where it was” a decade ago in terms of FTE officers.
Cllr Ellis says in March 2010 there were 2,409 FTE officers, before this number dropped to 1,936 as of March 2019.
As of March 2023, he says there are now 2,407 FTE officers in Nottinghamshire.
While the force was also granted temporary national funding for a further 50 officers, it is not expected these will remain in post permanently.
“The panel has welcomed the increase in the number of officers,” he said.
“So we are just about back where we were in 2010. We are not higher than where we were, we are back to where we were.
“There has been an eight per cent increase in population in that time. We have had a decade of declining numbers, a loss of expertise, and now were are back to where we were with a relatively inexperienced workforce, some of the problems we have heard of in terms of confidence and behaviour.”
Nottinghamshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC), Caroline Henry, said the numbers meet the target of 2,357 FTE officers.
“The target was 2,357,” she said.
“That was the figure we should have had after the uplift, but there was an opportunity to get funding for an extra 50.
“Originally, it was 31 and an extra 19, but we always knew we would not be able to keep them, we just took them early because we are always losing.
“But my target is 2,357.”
Cllr Ellis added: “So we are lower than where we were in 2010?”
Mrs Henry replied to say: “Yes.”
Concerns were also raised over the numbers of Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs) in the north of Nottinghamshire, particularly in the towns across Bassetlaw.
PCC Mrs Henry said there are currently 150 PCSOs and she is “committed to keeping them”.
An annual PCC report says the force’s headcount numbers are “the highest in over a decade”.
The force says it was able to exceed its recruitment expectations after reaching its target 12 months early and being granted temporary national funding for a further 50 officers within the current financial year.
“The recruitment has helped the expansion of a number of teams, including Response, Neighbourhood Policing and Operation Reacher, as well as the creation of a new road crime team, among other benefits,” report documents say.
“This is enabling greater visibility of officers across all areas of the
county and supporting ongoing improvements in services for the public.”
