PCC unveils local policing budget prioritising community safety, protecting people and property

Matthew Barber’s spending plans for Thames Valley Police will keep council tax rise to just 27p per week for a Band D household

Matthew Barber, Police & Crime Commissioner for Thames Valley, has set out his local policing budget for 2025/26.

The budget for Thames Valley Police will rise to nearly £600m in the next financial year with nearly half of that funding having to be provided by local council tax payers. The increase of £14 a year in Council Tax (based on a Band D property) will provide additional investment to help cut crime and catch more criminals. This is against a backdrop of additional costs of £8m to cover increased National Insurance contributions and £30m additional costs from inflation.

In setting the budget, Matthew Barber said: “My priorities for Thames Valley Police are cutting crime and catching criminals. As your Police and Crime Commissioner, it is my responsibility to ensure that the police have the resources they need to deliver on those priorities.

“Setting the policing budget remains a complex process and is particularly challenging this year given the uncertainty of funding from the Home Office. This year, I will be setting the budget against the backdrop of an uncertain economic situation which is affecting households as well as police forces up and down the country.

“Despite seeing a cash increase in central Government funding, due to inflationary pressures it falls short of the amount necessary to maintain current levels of policing, let alone deliver the increases that we would all want to see in the Thames Valley. A rise in employer national insurance and lack of central funding for police pay rises add to this challenge.

“In order to maintain policing levels, keep communities safe and address the policing priorities of residents identified through my ongoing local crime survey, I have made the decision to increase Council Tax contributions by 27p per week for a Band D property.

“This increase will ensure that we can continue to put more police officers into frontline roles to protect communities, people and property across the Thames Valley.

“Previous investment made through last year’s policing budget has enabled us to recruit more frontline police officers across the Force, alongside the delivery of a Thames Valley wide programme to help tackle and deter young people from knife crime.

“This investment has also supported the work taking place through my Retail Crime Strategy, where we have seen charges for shoplifting more than double in a year, as well as the delivery of a Thames Valley CCTV partnership which aims to deliver improved, sustainable CCTV provision to help detect and deter crime and keep the public safe.”

Over 2,700 residents responded to the ongoing local crime survey (7 January 2024 to 3 January 2025) to help shape the budget priorities.

The budget will be presented to the Police and Crime Panel today (Friday 24th January) before being finalised.