Policing shake-up brings pledge to protect front-line officers

A new operating model proposes to change the current 12 Neighbourhood Policing Teams, all led by a police inspector, across the Bradford district, to six Safer Neighbourhood Areas, each headed up by an inspector.

Bradford District Commander Chief Superintendent Simon Atkin said: “Ongoing changes within the Bradford district are to ensure policing services are as integrated as they possibly can be with key partners within the local authority, working on area committee and ward boundaries. This does not affect front-line policing numbers throughout the district.

“The emphasis will be on leaner leadership, a front-line that is protected as far as possible and the introduction of the new operating model incorporating multi-agency co-located partners.”

According to a report to the Bradford South Area Committee the new areas will cover Keighley, Shipley, Bradford West, Bradford East and Bradford South, which are in line with the parliamentary constituency boundaries, and are the same as those used by the local authority and NHS. The sixth neighbourhood policing inspector will head up a team to cover the regeneration area of Bradford city centre, within the current City ward.

The report says: “The staffing within each of those areas has been assessed using a ward need based assessment tool and the desire to maintain local officers in the communities in which they are firmly embedded. It is not the intention of the Bradford District Police Commander to reduce policing numbers in communities.”

A Safer Neighbourhood Support Hub is being developed supporting district-wide functions, including anti-social behaviour and hate crime. Last November Bradford South Police Division and Airedale and North Bradford Police Division were amalgamated to form Bradford Policing District.