Nearly 100 new police officers recruited by force in the region
West Mercia Police has recruited more than 90 officers in the past year, with recruitment numbers at the highest level in a decade.
Despite the challenges that Covid-19 brought on, the force met its recruitment target for 2020/21 with 93 new officers.
West Mercia Police now has 2,298 officers, the highest level in a decade. In England and Wales, there have been 6,620 new recruits – meeting the national aim to recruit 6,000 by April 2020.
The force reports its highest proportion of female officers ever, at 32.6 per cent – an increase of 11.56 per cent across all ranks over the past year.
Representation of officers from ethnic minority backgrounds has risen to more than 2.7 per cent, also the highest level the force has seen.
Rachel Hartland Lane, director of business services at the force, said the latest figures mean the force is now “more representative” than ever before, but there is still a long to go to achieve diversity.
The allocation of new officers for the next financial year is 91, with 40 of these to be student officers posted on patrol and deployed to Shrewsbury, Telford, Hereford, Worcester, Kidderminster and Redditch.
Meanwhile, 13 officers will join Safer Neighbourhood Teams and 17 detectives will be posted to Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin, Herefordshire and Worcestershire, as well as the force’s headquarters at Hindlip Hall.
Police and Crime Commissioner John Campion said: “The communities of West Mercia have made it clear that visible policing is one of their top priorities, and I am delighted that the force has achieved its target for the recruitment of new officers in 2020/21.”
