Officer numbers up by 255

25 January 2023

The number of officers serving with Derbyshire Police rose by 255 in 2022, according to Home Office figures.

Data released today as part of a quarterly Police Uplift Programme update showed the headcount in December was 2,173 compared with 1,918 last January.

Nationwide figures revealed that 16,753 new officers had now been recruited from funding for the Police Uplift Programme - 84 per cent of the target of 20,000 the Government hopes to achieve by March.

There are now 145,658 officers in the 43 territorial police forces in England and Wales. 

Derbyshire Police Federation chair Tony Wetton welcomed the increase in officer numbers but said more needed to be done to improve the service.

He said: “Obviously we are pleased to see officer numbers going up instead of down but it is important to recognise that the new recruits taken on over the last 12 months are actually replacing the officers that were lost over 12 years of cuts and under-investment.

“The Force must now do everything it can to make sure its new officers are well looked after, given good training and provided with the resources they need to flourish in the job.  There are huge challenges in terms of the initial training of our new recruits, with large cohorts training together in large classes which puts pressure on them and on the officers training them.  We also have to acknowledge that a huge proportion of our frontline officers are very inexperienced and need time to learn and develop in a very difficult job.  But policing would far rather manage those challenges than face the hugely damaging under-resourcing that we saw for a decade post austerity.

“The Government has to make sure these new officers are properly rewarded for the sacrifices they are making and are treated with the respect that they deserve. 

“We have always supported the Police Uplift Programme but it is only part of the story because officer numbers have to be maintained so the Government must make a commitment to treat police officers fairly and look after them properly.

“We cannot, and must not, go back to those days of cuts to policing budgets.  We need these numbers of officers to keep the public safe.”

A Home Office spokesman said: “The Government has pledged to invest more £3.5 billion in policing between 2020 and 2023 in order to recruit 20,000 additional officers.

“Additional officers will support forces in tackling crime and making communities safer.

“The Police Uplift Programme is one of a range of initiatives the Government has implemented to support policing.”