THE Cheshire Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) has welcomed news that the county’s force has hired an additional 322 officers through the police uplift programme, exceeding its recruitment target.

PCC John Dwyer says Cheshire Constabulary now has more officers than it has ever had, stating that the impact is being felt through improved incident response times and increased arrest and charge rates.

The extra officers will also bolster the Constabulary’s 122 community policing model, where each of Cheshire’s community areas is assigned its own dedicated police team.

Mr Dwyer said the uplift in numbers was something he promised he would deliver to the county.

He said: “I promised in my Police and Crime Plan that to improve public confidence in policing I would support the Constabulary in reaching its largest ever number of officers.

“That promise has been delivered, and now I’m committed to working with the Chief Constable to see how we can go even further.

“People in Cheshire expect the police to be contactable, responsive, and proactive in tackling crime.

“That’s exactly what is happening, and thanks to our new recruits we’re able to double down on our efforts to make Cheshire even safer.”

Recent figures from Cheshire Constabulary show that the number of arrests made from January to March 2023 was 18 per cent higher than during the same months last year, with the overall ‘action taken’ rate for crime up by 11 per cent across the same time period.

And in an emergency where every second counts, figures showed that the average time taken to attend an emergency fell by 49 seconds.

To find out more about your local policing team, go to www.cheshire.police.uk/area/your-area/

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