The force is set to receive up to £687.2 million as part of the Government’s latest funding announcement, representing a 4.2 per cent cash increase compared to last year.

This forms part of the Government’s record £18.4 billion investment in policing across England and Wales.

Shabana Mahmood, the Home Secretary, said: “Since taking office, this government has increased police funding by nearly £2 billion.

“We are restoring neighbourhood policing, with nearly 2,400 more neighbourhood officers in our communities.

“And we are now reforming policing, so local forces protect their communities, and national policing protects us all.”

The funding, which amounts to an increase of £796 million compared to the previous year and a 2.3 per cent real-terms rise, includes an additional £50 million dedicated to delivering the Government’s Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee.

This guarantee aims to put 13,000 neighbourhood policing personnel into roles by the end of this parliament.

In April last year, the Government promised to deploy 3,000 officers into neighbourhood roles within 12 months.

This was aimed at reducing crime and tackling anti-social behaviour in town centres and residential areas.

Nearly 2,400 additional neighbourhood officers have already been put in place in the six months up to the end of September 2025, representing a 14 per cent increase since the end of March 2025.

From April, the Officer Maintenance Grant will be replaced by a new Neighbourhood Policing Ringfence.

This change is intended to ensure resources are focused on visible policing in communities rather than back-office roles.

The previous system had required police chiefs to maintain specific officer headcounts, which sometimes resulted in officers being assigned to support roles rather than frontline duties.

Over the past six years, the number of trained officers in support roles has risen by more than 40 per cent to over 12,600, while the total number of officers only increased by around 20 per cent during the same period.

The new funding model aims to reverse this trend and put more officers where they are needed most.

The Home Secretary has also announced broader plans to reform the policing system.

A £119 million investment in 2026-27 will support the creation of a new national centre for AI in policing.

Funding will also go towards the nationwide rollout of live facial recognition technology.