Warning as police budget to be agreed

The authority is expecting a deficit of £15m in its budget this year and believes the funding gap will rise to more than £40m by 2014/15.

However, despite the shortage of money the authority said it was likely to confirm a freeze on its share of council tax levels in the next financial year.

Bill Wilkinson, chief executive and treasurer of the authority, which oversees the work of the force, said: “The force has been cutting back on annual running costs for over ten years.

“Further efficiencies are being identified, but the scale of the cuts being forced on the authority by the Government will inevitably mean some impact on staff numbers.

“We hope the chief constable will be able to manage the reductions in a way that minimises the impact on local policing services, but there may have to be some changes over the next few years.

“The authority is making available some money to help meet the upfront costs of reducing the size of the workforce but reserves are limited. The authority and the chief constable will keep the public informed as we move forward.”

Earlier this week, the Yorkshire Post revealed that around 100 South Yorkshire officers are expected to go by March 2012, rising to 414 by March 2015 as experienced members retire.

Budget forecasts indicate 289 South Yorkshire support staff will leave next year, mostly through voluntary redundancy, and up to 680 will depart over the next four years.

The Police Authority meeting begins at 10.15am today and the authority said members of the public can watch live through a webcast by visiting the website www.southyorks.gov.uk