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Police and Crime Commissioner Matt Storey has dubbed the Government’s latest funding settlement for Cleveland Police as “farcical” and placing “huge strain” on the force.
Due to Government grants rising at a significantly lower rate than inflation and pay awards, the force is facing a £2.4m funding shortfall – the equivalent of around 40 full-time police officers.
In December, Policing Minister Sarah Jones MP announced funding settlements for police forces across England and Wales for the 2026-2027 financial year.
After accounting for the cost of last year’s pay award, Cleveland effectively only received an increase of *2.9%, the lowest in the country and a real term reduction in funding.
The Government allocates funding for police forces based on the area’s population and does not account for levels of deprivation, need or recorded crime.
Despite reductions of **5% in the last year, Cleveland has the highest number of crimes per 1,000 population of any police force in England and Wales.
And almost a third of neighbourhoods in the Cleveland policing area are ranked in the top 10% most deprived areas nationally, the highest percentage of any force area in England.
Matt said: “The system used to fund police forces in this country is broken. I’m saddened that despite my pleas, the Government has chosen not to heed my requests for fairer funding for Cleveland.
“Let’s be clear, this settlement completely fails to deliver the resources required to meet the demand faced by Cleveland Police and falls far short of what is needed."
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