A joint Audit Commission, Wales Audit Office and Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC)'s report - 'Sustaining value for money in the police service', has found that the police in England and Wales could save up to £1 billion (12 per cent of central government funding) without reducing police availability.

The report, published on 20 July 2010, shows where savings can be made: breaking down silos with forces working together, and a more efficient match between risk of crime and the number of police on duty to deal with peaks and troughs in demand.

It notes spending on the police was £13.7 billion in 2008/09, which is 47 per cent more than 1997/98. 80 per cent of this is on staff. Some forces have shown how £270 million could be saved across the service with greater use of civilian staff.

Study manager Jane Kennedy says, 'Police forces need to plan for major change to meet budget cuts but maintain services. The joint  Audit Commission, Wales Audit Office and HMIC report provides the police service with a framework for change using a transformational approach that starts with threat, harm and risk assessment.'

Better procurement

Better procurement (such as buying forensics services, fleet vehicles) could save around £100 million, and up to £140 million could be cut from back office costs.

Some forces have collaborated to save millions: Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire have a joint Major Crimes Unit, while the four forces in Wales worked together and saved £3.3 million on purchasing goods and services in 2008/09.

Higher spending police forces are not necessarily better than others, the joint report concludes.

In 2008/09, 32 of the 43 police forces spent less than the previous year. But in 10 of 16 forces visited for the joint report, the approach to efficiency was 'unlikely to address the emerging financial challenge'.

Michael O'Higgins, Chairman of the Audit Commission, said: 'Police forces will need strong leadership from politicians, police authorities and chief constables if they are to save money without reducing service to the public. Better value for money in policing will be a challenge, but it is possible.

'Many police forces have shown how to save money and actually improve performance while maintaining public confidence - some have even done this with fewer police officers. And greater local scrutiny of police spending should help the higher spending forces.'

A transformational approach

The joint report also finds that, to make big savings and maintain performance, forces need a transformational approach and must start with a threat, harm and risk assessment. Police spending should reflect success in reducing crime.

Local assessments ought to identify the priorities, considering changing crime patterns to decide where investment is needed and where forces can reduce spending.

Further information

Access the Audit Commission and HMIC full report: 'Sustaining Value for Money in the Police Service' (PDF file, 72 pages, 2.4 MB).

Access the: 'Report Summary' (PDF file, 18 pages, 791 KB).

Download the: 'Sustaining Value for Money in the Police Service Data Reporting Tool' (Excel file, 940 KB).

HMIC has also published a separate report:  'Valuing the Police' (PDF file, 31 pages, 273 KB), which shows that only 11 per cent of the police are visibly available to the public, despite year-on-year increases to budgets for the last 40 years.