Home Office confirms continued funding for PCSOs

FRONTLINE policing in Surrey has been given a boost after the Home Office confirmed it will continue with its current level of funding for Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs) in England and Wales for the next two financial years.

The continued funding is in recognition of the important role PCSOs play in delivering visible and available policing for communities and supports the commitment of Surrey Police to focusing on the issues that matter most to local people.

Putting the Surrey Public First is the number one priority for Surrey Police and the Force values the skills and experience that PCSOs contribute towards achieving this.

Chief Superintendent of Neighbourhoods, Gavin Stephens, said: “We are determined to increase our frontline capability by recruiting up to 200 extra PCs and we have always intended that this should not be done at the expense of other key frontline resources such as PCSOs – whether or not we continued to receive the Home Office grant, which covers 75 per cent of the salary costs. However, this confirmation will certainly help to relieve some of the pressure on our budget.

“As part of our commitment to focusing on what matters most to local communities, our Roads Police Community Support Officers are, from this month, working as part of the Neighbourhood Support Teams alongside Casualty Reduction Officers, tackling those roads related issues that most concern local people.”

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