Police funding in Peterborough labelled 'woefully inadequate' as residents polled on paying more in council tax to support force
Residents in Peterborough have been invited to have their say on how the police in the city are funded.
Police and Crime Commissioner Darryl Preston has asked the public for their views as he prepares a new budget to deliver policing across Cambridgeshire and Peterborough.
The Commissioner has now launched an online survey asking residents how much they would be prepared to pay towards policing in 2025-2026.
Roughly half of the funding for Cambridgeshire Constabulary comes from government with the remainder from the policing part of council tax.
Mr Preston said: “Police funding is based on a woefully inadequate funding formula which results in our county remaining one of the lowest funded forces in the country
“Since the funding formula was set, our population has grown by 11% and is forecast to grow much faster than the national average.
"At the same time, there are areas of the country which have maintained the same level of population and some areas who have seen their population reduce. Yet the way funding is allocated using the existing formula is outdated and does not meet our county’s needs.
“I recently wrote to the Home Secretary (as I have done with previous Home Secretaries since first being elected in 2021) to express my concerns about this issue and will continue to lobby for fairer funding.
“For taxpayers in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, this means local people must contribute almost half of our total police budget.
“With household budgets struggling to cope with rising costs, no Police and Crime Commissioner wants to ask people to pay more however I am left with no choice if we are to maintain the police force we have here in Cambridgeshire. Without increasing the police element of council tax, we will not be able to maintain current record officer numbers.”
For the financial year, 2025-2026, Police and Crime Commissioners are expected to increase the precept element of council tax by £14 (based on a Band D property).
He added: “While I welcome the increase of 5.5% from government, it is important to note that some of this increase has to pay for already-committed cost increases such as employer national insurance contributions.
“The force has already worked hard to identify £5.5m of further cost savings for 2025-26 – without the proposed £14 increase in the policing part of council tax, further cost savings will need to be made.
“I am therefore reluctantly proposing an increase of 4.89% for taxpayers in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough which equates to an increase of 27p per week for Band D properties and 18p per week for Band A properties.”
“Every community deserves a properly funded and well-equipped police force. In Cambridgeshire, we have made huge strides to adapt and expand our capabilities to improve the way we prevent, solve and investigate crime and this effort needs to be sustained.”
The survey is available online and will be open until midnight on Monday 20th January 2025.
If you need help to share your views or would prefer to give your views by telephone, you can call 0300 333 3456 or email [email protected].
The Commissioner launched a new Police and Crime Plan in November 2024 which set strategic policing priorities over the next three years. Put together following extensive consultation with residents, businesses and stakeholders, the Plan focuses on ‘safe communities’ and features four key themes:
- Early Intervention and prevention - working with police and partners to keep communities safe.
- Tackling crime and anti-social behaviour – including issues such as road safety, rural crime, and business crime.
- Supporting Victims and Witnesses - ensuring victims of crime have access to support services, and:
- Building trust and confidence – holding the Chief Constable to account to ensure police officers and staff always carry out their duties with integrity and social responsibility.
Mr Preston added: “It is important the Chief Constable has the resources he needs to be able to continue to deliver an effective and efficient service, taking into account the rise locally and nationally of violent crime, the growing challenges of fraud and cybercrime across national and international boundaries and increasing call handling resources.”