Funding squeeze forces difficult choice on Wiltshire Police – stations cut rather than officers

Wiltshire’s Chief Constable and Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) have faced difficult choices in bridging the £5.2m funding gap for the forthcoming financial year. As much as 85% of the police budget is spent on officers and staff, and a reduction in the police establishment was a risk.

It has been announced that the funding shortfall will be primarily managed through changes to the police state across Wiltshire. Devizes Borough and Amesbury police stations will close, and personnel will be relocated to police headquarters in London Road, Devizes, and to Tidworth police station.

The video interview facilities in the former police station at Wilton Road, Salisbury, will also close and be relocated to Tidworth.

A bonus will be the opening of a public front counter at police headquarters in Devizes.

The announcement was accompanied by assurance that service delivery to the public will continue unaffected by the provision of mobile police stations and more yellow telephones outside police buildings.

The savings, coupled with a 5.2% increase in the police precept, have mitigated the overall funding shortfall of £11m.

What has not been addressed is the reality that the longer-term financial viability of Wiltshire Police is not secure. Local policing is financed through a combination of government grants and contributions from the local council tax, specifically the police precept. The root causes for this situation rest in three key factors.

The government’s funding formula makes Wiltshire Police the third lowest funded police force in England and Wales per head of population. This dated formula does nothing to mitigate Wiltshire Police’s rural spread and increasing demands from the public.

As the government wrestles with financial challenges across the public sector, it is improbable that this situation will change. In the future, Swindon and Wiltshire taxpayers will be expected to pay more for policing.

The PCC presented the results of his public consultation regarding the 2025/26 police precept to the Wiltshire Police and Crime Panel on 5 February 2025. He received 1,267 responses, a decrease of 1,400 responses compared to the previous year. In summary, only 56.7% of respondents supported an increase in the police precept. Many respondents voiced their dissatisfaction with local policing.

The changes to the police estate mean that plans to improve facilities at the Devizes police headquarters and open a policing hub in the south of Wiltshire have had to be shelved.

In advocating for the redevelopment of the headquarters site, the PCC stated the investment would provide facilities that enable Wiltshire Police to work more effectively, adapt to changing crime demands, and enhance visibility and reassurance within communities. He stated that failing to invest in the police estate would be detrimental to the services received by communities and that maintaining outdated buildings at high costs would not be a justifiable use of public funds. The risks the PCC warned against are now being realised.

Years of austerity and continued shortfalls in funding mean that the Chief Constable’s ability to find savings has diminished. The inevitable threat will be future reductions in officer and civilian staff.

Inadequate government funding, the unwillingness of Swindon and Wiltshire residents to contribute more to local policing, and the Chief Constable’s lack of capacity to identify savings will create a perfect storm that could sink Wiltshire Police. This is a problem threatening the forty-three police forces across England and Wales.

Wiltshire Police previously established tri-force arrangements with Avon and Somerset Police and Gloucestershire Police, which encompassed roads policing, firearms, and dog units. However, these arrangements were ultimately abandoned due to the failure to agree on a new structure. In other words, there was no burning platform to make change inescapable.

I anticipate financial necessity will eventually overcome the lack of consensus and force lasting change. I have worked on mergers and acquisitions in the private sector. They require careful planning and will present challenges, particularly when it comes to managing change.

Caught in this turmoil are the officers and police staff who strive to keep us safe. The Police Federation has remarked on declining morale as officers struggle to manage demand.

In supporting local policing, there is an adage that the cap badge matters. There is a fear that in reducing the number of police forces, rural communities will suffer as police resources are drawn towards urban centres of population.

Managing these concerns underlines the importance of detailed planning and consideration. Ignoring financial constraints is not a sustainable option. The time has arrived for a review of how policing is delivered across England and Wales.