Scotland needs community coppers back - and SNP must come up with the cash

On the face of it, Police Scotland’s recent plea for more cash is just another case of public sector special pleading as budgets are being drawn up for the coming year of tight settlements. With a huge black hole in the public purse, and no recent history of our government prioritising our criminal justice system, you might think there’s a fat chance. But look closer and you see that that this is no ordinary bid. Police Scotland is aiming to do something very important, to build back a vital community service, almost lost by accident.

The last decade has been a long and weary succession of lean years for our police as well as the other components of our justice system. From 17,200 officers ten years ago, to 16,400 currently, it’s been a slow slide into a serious shortage of boots on the ground, quite literally so, because accompanying the decline in funding and officer numbers has come a steady increase in demand to deal with new crimes. We are told that cyber crime now accounts for half of all crime committed, and investigating it is highly specialised and time consuming.

Complex historic investigations take another slice, the raised terror threat yet another. Over the summer the never ending succession of demonstrations and the re emergence of football violence completes a perfect storm. With all the cuts and increasing demands something’s got to give and the sacrifice has been community policing . In the not too distant past neighbourhoods had a dedicated police officer who they knew, and worked from their local police station.

That’s mostly gone now, many of our small police stations are closed , and hardly anyone knows the name of a local Constable , let alone be on speaking terms with them . As a result local connections have been lost and low level nuisance crime has flourished. Not the sort that warrants a 999 call , just a quiet word in the ear of a trusted local Cop , who will act quickly . Nipping problems in the bud has always been the often unmeasurable, but vital strength of Community Policing .

Chief Constable Jo Farrell is seeking increased funding in next years budget to reverse some of the cuts , and build back that bond formed by community policing. Communities are, after all, more than a collection of houses and businesses. They are living entities held together by components that combine to form a social glue that binds people together. By accident or design many of these building blocks are now gone or in danger. local pubs are closing by the week , post offices likewise.

The local doctors’ surgery is now a call centre, the church is closed or amalgamated, and the local constable is now invisible. The cumulative effects of these changes has resulted in a sense of isolation and insecurity in many parts of our country . Now Police Scotland want to do something about it . The plea for funding for our police service is not just another demand for cash but a bold and far sighted bid to build back a vital community service.

It’s late in the day, and it’s going to take a while but Police Scotland is looking at the big picture. Let’s hope our political leaders see it too. Tom Wood is a writer and former police officer