South Yorkshire Police on track to recruit nearly 1,500 officers over next three years

The Home Office today announced that it is on course to meet its national target of recruiting an additional 6,000 police officers in England and Wales by March 2021, as online assessment centres mean forces can continue recruiting.

In South Yorkshire this will mean an extra 487 police officers on the streets, plus an extra 220 officers funded by South Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner Alan Billing’s decision to increase council tax in the 2019/20 financial year.

An estimated 779 new recruits are also needed to fill the spaces of officers retiring or leaving the force between now and March 2023.

Dr Alan Billings said: “These figures show that despite the current situation police officer recruitment is continuing at the projected pace.

“The targets for recruitment are ambitious but it is pleasing to see that we are receiving a high number of successful applicants, from across a range of backgrounds and diverse communities.

“In South Yorkshire we had already announced a recruitment process, funded through the council tax precept last year and were working towards an additional 220 officers by March 2023.

“The Government initiative and the need to backfill posts vacant posts will mean that by March 2023 we will have an additional 1,486 officers, working across South Yorkshire.

“All new recruits are receiving tailored training so they can be safely deployed to the front line and support the police’s emergency response as quickly as possible.”