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The force says...

Gloucestershire is a rural county covering 1,041 square miles. Its population of 605,000 is older than average, with concentrations in Gloucester and Cheltenham. Greatest ethnic diversity is in Gloucester (10 percent). Eight neighbourhoods are amongst the most deprived nationally. A third of residents have limited access to transport.

The county houses royal residencies, the Allied Rapid Reaction Corps and GCHQ. These increase potential physical and cyber security threats requiring the retention of additional firearms capability.

The National Hunt Festival and the Royal International Air Tattoo attract over 370,000 visitors. These events require mobilisation of significant policing resources.

The city of Gloucester has commercial quays, an urban night-time economy and fast-growing ICT and finance sectors. There are 3,300 miles of roads, incorporating the M5 corridor. The student population exceeds 13,000.

Crime rates are low compared with Gloucestershire’s most similar forces. Volume of recorded crime has increased by 16 percent in 2015-2017, however this is below the national increase. There are approximately 157,000 incidents annually, with high demand around violent crime, theft and sexual offences.

The revenue budget for 2017/18 is £107.2m. Since 2011 £32m savings have been identified to balance the budget. The 2017/18 budget assumes an establishment for officers and staff of 1,826 FTE (full time equivalent). Since 2010 the establishment has reduced by 16 percent (360 FTE).

The operational structure has recently evolved to deliver initial investigation teams within the force control room, dedicated neighbourhood policing capability, force response unit and local investigation teams; all supported by a centralised custody suite and investigations facility – serious/complex, digital and public protection hubs (including MASH).

Specialist functions – roads policing, armed capability, dogs, major and organised crime capabilities – are delivered collaboratively with South West forces.

The crime harm reduction team with local partnerships work to tackle gang violence and anti-social behaviour, and safeguard vulnerable people (e.g. Project Solace, Aston Project).

Disclaimer: the above statement has been prepared by Gloucestershire Constabulary. The views and information in it are not necessarily those of HMICFRS.