Dozens more officers need to be hired by Thames Valley Police to meet the Government's recruitment target, new figures show.

But Police and Crime Commissioner Matthew Barber said the force was expected to ‘not just have met but should exceed the Home Office target for recruitment’.

Government figures show there were 4,832 police officers for Thames Valley in December 2022, up eight per cent from 4,479 the year before.

As of December, 582 officers were recruited through the programme in Thames Valley – 96 per cent of the target of 609 new officers in the area.

Mr Barber told the Oxford Mail: “By the end of the financial year, March 2023, Thames Valley Police will not just have met but should exceed the Home Office target for recruitment.

“Although the final number will be subject to minor variations, I’m expecting it to be in the region of 80.

“We’ll get a limited one-off payment from the Home Office for this, but the default position would be that the establishment remain the same and that would just be 80 less people to recruit in 2023/24 and numbers would reduce back down to the level funded by the Home Office.”

He was expecting to fund a further 80 police officers across the region through an increase in the amount of council tax – called a precept – earmarked for policing.

“Working with the incoming chief constable I am expecting this additional resource to be put into community policing,” the police and crime commissioner said.

The Police Federation of England and Wales, which represents rank and file officers, said it was ‘unlikely’ the government would meet its target of 20,000 new police officers across the two countries by March.

Deputy national chairman, Tiff Lynch, said: “While the uplift programme aims to recruit an additional 20,000 police officers was welcome, it should not be overlooked that it was the government who cut the number of officers in the first place.”

She said that the numbers do not take into account the real picture: "Latest figures indicate 8,117 police officers left the service in England and Wales in the year ending March 2022 – the highest number of leavers since comparable records began, and at least 1,800 of those officers who joined under the Government Uplift Programme have already voluntarily resigned.

"Police officers work tirelessly to fulfil their duty to protect the public and uphold the law. In return, all they want is fair treatment, consistent welfare support and pay proportionate to prevailing economic conditions and the dangers they face as part of the job."

Home Secretary Suella Braverman said she was ‘delighted’, saying the government was on track to fulfilling the pledge.

"This next generation of brave police officers will add to efforts to drive down invasive crimes like burglary and neighbourhood offences, return to common sense policing and make our communities feel safer and stronger," she added.

Read more from this author

This story was written by Tom Seaward. He joined the team in 2021 as Oxfordshire's court and crime reporter.  

To get in touch with him email: Tom.Seaward@newsquest.co.uk

Follow him on Twitter: @t_seaward