County has more police than ever (From Stroud News and Journal)

County has more police than ever

MORE policemen are working in Gloucestershire now than ever before according to chief constable Tim Brain.

The county force now has 1,250 officers after more than 100 new ones were recruited in the last year, he said.

Just five years ago, the total was 1,138.

"Most of the new officers are, of course, still under training and will take two years to complete their programme," said Mr Brain.

"But the important first steps in their development have already been made."

The chief constable's report shows the total number of crimes recorded in the county in the last operational year was 55,575 - an increase of more than 5,000 on the 2001/2 year total of 50,467.

Mr Brain said that big rise in figures is partly due to a new Crime Recording Standard.

The total income of the force for the year was £74,986,000 with £19,647,000 of that amount coming directly from council taxpayers in the county.

The rise in officer numbers was reflected in the hours the constabulary spent out on the streets deterring and detecting crime said Mr Brain.

"Gloucestershire officers spent an additional 5,704 hours out on patrol in the county's streets in the last year," he said.

"The increase was one of a range of targets the constabulary set for itself following consultation with the public."

He said one of the main ways the extra patrolling was achieved was to put able bodied officers who had been predominately office based in places such as the Crime Management Unit back out on the streets.