This page provides information about how Warwickshire Police will be financed in the 2023/24 financial year. It includes details of how the Police Precept will change (the portion of Council Tax households contribute towards police services), how the money is spent and how the budget has changed. It also outlines the key benefits the Commissioner’s budget will deliver over the course of the year.
You can view the Commissioner’s announcement about the budget on our news pages.
What the budget will deliver
Warwickshire Police and Crime Commissioner Philip Seccombe
As Police and Crime Commissioner, my prime duty is to secure an efficient and effective police service which delivers against the priorities of the public. This involves giving the Chief Constable the resources she needs to keep the public safe, while at the same time ensuring that every penny put into policing delivers value for money.
Our budget is generated from a number of different sources; Government Grants make up just over half, while we also have a small amount of income, form various sources, such as services we provide on behalf of policing nationally. Council Tax, in the form of the Police Precept, forms the remainder, at just under half of the budget.
While we have seen a welcome increase in Central Government funding this year, it alone will not provide the funding we need to protect our services. Even to stand still, budgets must increase or there is the real prospect of reducing service levels, rather than improving them. That would be the opposite of what the majority of people tell me they want to see; there is a strong desire for continued improvements in the accessibility, visibility and quality of policing they receive.
That’s why, I am having to raise the Police Precept by 5.3%. That is considerably below inflation and is among the lowest increases set across the country. It means that an average Band D household in Warwickshire will pay an additional 27 pence per week or £14 per year. The majority of households in the county will pay less and, while no-one likes to receive enlarged bills, I think it does represent value for money in securing a 24/7 policing response with enhanced community safety.
To help keep increases to the Police Precept as low as possible, the force has been able to deliver efficiency savings worth around £1 million, which have been achieved without putting jobs at risk and come as a result of the better working practices previous investments in state-of-the-art IT systems have enabled.
For any increase in taxation, bill payers must be able to understand very clearly what they are getting for every penny extra they put in. This year’s budget will therefore provide the Chief Constable the resources to:
- Expand policing further, providing 10 extra police officers deployed within local policing to improve police visibility.
- Provide more capacity within our control room to improve the experience when people call Warwickshire Police, with 15 extra call handlers helping to reduce wait times.
- Establish new resolution centres at our main police stations in Nuneaton, Leamington, Rugby and Stratford, giving the public the ability to visit and talk to a police officer, with extended opening times seven days a week.
- Strengthen our safer neighbourhood teams, with PCSO vacancies proactively recruited to and more settled teams.
- Actively recruit more Specials to increase the numbers available to support officers to improve visible policing in Warwickshire.
- Implement a new geographically based policing model, which is more locally accountable. Each area will be led by a Chief inspector with the autonomy to respond to local demands and provide a direct communication link to the communities they police.
- Introduce new patrol investigations teams that will be responsible for undertaking investigations into some of the higher volume crimes, to deliver better outcomes for victims. This will also enable the existing patrol teams to focus on providing an immediate response to incidents.
In addition, this budget provides for increased grants and five newly-commissioned services for victims, namely a general service for all victims of crime, alongside specialist services for victims of sexual abuse and violence; child exploitation; restorative justice and victims of modern slavery and human trafficking. These services will enable victims to get expanded levels of support throughout the criminal justice processes, helping them to cope and recover from the effects of crime.
I will be monitoring how these improvements are delivered over the course of the year and will keep you updated. In addition, I am confident that, as an overall package, these improvements will help to deliver on my aims to reduce crime, support victims and make Warwickshire safer.
Philip Seccombe TD
Warwickshire Police and Crime Commissioner
Council Tax band - what will I pay?
The amount you pay for the police service will increase by 5.3% in 2023/24. Council Tax bands are calculated to four decimal places but are presented here to two decimal places, therefore they may vary by plus/minus 0.01p.
| Council Tax Band | % of Warwickshire properties currently falling in this band | 2023/24 Annual Increase | 2023/24 Total amount per year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Band A | 16.7% | £9.33 | £184.47 |
| Band B | 19.8% | £10.89 | £215.22 |
| Band C | 25.2% | £12.44 | £245.96 |
| Band D | 15.7% | £14.00 | £276.71 |
| Band E | 10.6% | £17.11 | £338.20 |
| Band F | 6.5% | £20.22 | £399.69 |
| Band G | 4.8% | £23.33 | £461.18 |
| Band H | 0.6% | £28.00 | £553.42 |
You can check which Council Tax band your household is in at the Gov.uk website. Data on the number of properties per band is from February 2022.
How Warwickshire Police's budget is funded
In 2023/24 the Warwickshire police budget will be funded from three different sources:
- Central government grants: £64.459 million
- Reserves: £0.810 million
- Council Tax: £60.728 million.
How is the money spent?
In 2023/24 we plan to spend £147.520 million before income and use of reserves. The gross expenditure on police services has increased by £12.347 million compared with 2022/23. Our net budget requirement is £125.187 million.
| 2022/23 Spending (£m) |
2023/24 Spending (£m) |
2023/24 Cost for each person (£) |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Expenditure on police services | 135.173 | 147.520 | 247.20 |
| Income | -13.735 | -21.523 | -36.07 |
| Total cost of service | 121.438 | 125.997 | 211.13 |
| Transfer from reserves | -0.050 | -0.810 | -1.36 |
| Our net budget requirement | 121.388 | 125.187 | 209.77 |
| Police grant | -38.220 | -38.352 | -64.27 |
| Revenue support grant | -20.880 | -20.952 | -35.11 |
| Council tax support grant | -3.910 | -3.910 | -6.55 |
| Council tax freeze grant | -1.245 | -1.245 | -2.09 |
| Local tax income guarantee funding | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0.00 |
| Local Council Tax Support Grant funding | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0.00 |
| Council Tax funding | -57.133 | -60.728 | -101.76 |
Capital spending
We plan £10.527 million of capital spending in 2023/24. This is funded in the following ways:
| Capital spending | £m |
|---|---|
| Capital receipts | 1.154 |
| Revenue contributions | 2.062 |
| S106 funding | 0.500 |
| Specific grants | 0.132 |
| Reserves | 2.440 |
| Borrowing | 4.239 |
| Total spend/financing | 10.527 |
How the money has changed
Our net budget has increased by £3.799 million.
| Item | £m |
|---|---|
| Our net budget requirement 2022/23 | 121.388 |
| Savings | -0.942 |
| Income changes | -7.788 |
| Inflation, pressures and service changes | 13.289 |
| Movement in reserves | -0.760 |
| Our net budget requirement 2023/24 | 125.187 |
