Response Policing Week: teams under ‘significant pressure’ due to staff shortages

26 April 2026

Frontline response policing in Northamptonshire is under ‘significant and sustained pressure’, according to Sam Dobbs.

The chair of Northamptonshire Police Federation has warned that staffing shortfalls are leaving Local Response Teams (LRT) operating below safe minimum levels, with increasing strain placed on officers across shifts.

Sam said LRTs are facing ‘unprecedented gaps’ between required and actual staffing once abstractions such as training, court duties and sickness are taken into account. In some cases, teams are operating at close to half their intended strength.

Speaking to mark the end of Response Policing Week (20-26 April), Sam said: “There are not enough officers working on the frontline, and despite the will, work and ideas of us all, there are still not enough people to fill the gaps.”

Night shifts

The Federation says night shifts are of particular concern, describing them as the period of highest operational risk and lowest staffing resilience.

“The particular risk is around night staffing. It is when officers are at most risk of assault with the fewest people working,” Sam added. “Carrying on as we are is simply not an option.”

He also highlighted increasing reliance on overtime to maintain service levels, warning that this approach is becoming harder to sustain due to fatigue and reduced officer capacity to take additional shifts.

“Asking officers to continually plug the gaps is not sustainable, even where overtime is offered,” he said. “People need rest - and the system is now struggling to provide it.”

 

 

Despite the pressures, Sam stressed that the Federation continues to work closely with Force leadership as part of a shared approach to improving resilience and managing demand. 

This includes engagement on Operation Re-Gen, a Northamptonshire Police programme designed to address long-term resourcing and demand challenges.

He described the programme as positive in intent but acknowledged that the immediate challenges remain.

“Operation Re-Gen gives hope, but it is not moving quickly enough to resolve the immediate pressures we are seeing on response,” Sam said.

Restricted duties

The Force is also exploring a range of short-term measures, including temporary shift adjustments, redeployment of officers from other departments, increased use of staff with restricted duties, and changes to flexible working arrangements. The Federation has emphasised that any proposals must remain compliant with police regulations and subject to proper consultation.

“Regulations are law - they cannot be ignored or diluted,” Sam said. “We will support change where it is lawful, fair and safe. This is a one-team approach.”

He added that the Federation is actively engaged in discussions with senior leaders, including the Chief Constable, supporting them to maintain a safe and effective response policing.

“We are grateful to the senior leadership team for including us in these conversations. Rest assured, we are working closely with the Chief Constable to help the Force improve working conditions for response officers,” he said.

Challenge

“We all want the same outcome - a response function that is safe, effective and able to serve the public efficiently. But we also have to be honest about the reality of the situation today and the challenge we all face together.”

The concerns in Northamptonshire come alongside national findings released by the Police Federation of England and Wales (PFEW).

A major survey of almost 2,000 response officers across all 43 forces found that 9 in 10 respondents do not feel safe in their current working conditions. The research also found that only six per cent believe response policing is ‘working well’.

Officers highlighted consistent issues across the country, including chronic understaffing, high workloads, and limited recovery time between shifts. Around a third of respondents said large geographical areas and long travel times are impacting their ability to respond effectively to incidents.

Single-crewed

The survey also revealed recurring operational pressures, with officers reporting they are ‘constantly pushed onto the next incident’, frequently required to work single-crewed, and in some cases losing entire shifts due to demand spikes early in the day.

PFEW says these findings reflect a service under sustained strain, with response teams often dealing with high-risk incidents while already fatigued and short-staffed.

Alongside the survey, the Federation has launched a short film called ‘My Last Set’. The film uses actors to deliver real testimony from officers describing recent shifts, highlighting repeated exposure to traumatic incidents, long working hours, and insufficient rest and recovery time.

Watch My Last Set online today.