Police to merge South East Kent and Ashford Policing Areas

Kent Police has announced the first stage of a programme of review and change designed to make sure it is a force fit for the future. Initial plans include reducing the number of policing areas in the county from nine to six, with the target of cutting the time spent on administration and get more officers on to Kent's streets.

Of the six new policing areas, three existing ones remain unchanged: Medway, North Kent and West Kent. The three new areas bring together: Swale, Maidstone and Malling; Canterbury and Thanet; South East Kent and Ashford.

The South East Kent area currently covers an area of 197 sq miles, including Folkestone, Hythe, Dover and Deal. It has a residential population of 186,500 people with around 79,500 homes. It has 312 officers and 134 support staff to police the area, and an annual budget of just under £15 million. The plan is to merge this with the current Weald area force. Weald covers an area of 285 sq miles, including Ashford, Tenterden, Lydd and New Romney. It has 235 officers and 118 support staff.

The changes would mean that all of Shepway including Romney Marsh would fall under the same policing area. The location and leadership of the new area has yet to be announced, with the two existing headquarters being in Ashford and Folkestone.

Shepway Liberal Democrat spokesman Peter Carroll said:

"The Liberal Democrats have long called for more police on the beat. If these proposals achieve the aim of getting more police on the streets and making policing more effective then they will be welcomed by local residents."

Kent Police claim the aim is to put the force in the strongest possible position to tackle the challenges of the next 10 years. These include growing demands on its budget, the commitment to neighbourhood policing, changing policing methods and the need to work even more closely with local organisations such as councils, partners in the criminal justice system and the health service to tackle local problems.

Chief Constable Mike Fuller said:

"We are looking at how we work so we are ready to face the challenges of the next decade and continue to improve our service to the public. We will be looking closely at everything we do to build on what we do well and see whether and how we can do other things better.

"The decision to reduce the number of policing areas follows consultation with a wide range of local agencies. It will allow us to police Kent more efficiently and effectively and maintain and increase a visible policing presence at local level. I would stress that this decision has been made to allow us to put more officers on the front line to improve our service to the people of Kent.

"The initial changes proposed are largely administrative and will allow us to continue to focus on local need. For the public it will be business as usual, but with more officers on the streets and service that reflects our Kent Standard."