We welcome the opportunity to discuss the future of neighbourhood policing in more depth with the board, following the completion of the public consultation on the issue and the continued progress of the District Policing Command review. Our starting point is that we understand the perspective of local communities who wish to retain the services of officers they have developed trusted relationships with.
It is our experience that community policing roles remain attractive career options for officers and posts in neighbourhood teams are sought after as a chosen career path. We accept that the Board, and indeed local communities, will have seen a degree of movement of local officers as a result of promotion, retirement and career development opportunities.
We can reassure the Board that decisions to move neighbourhood officers are not taken lightly and we understand the importance of continuity of valued service. This perspective needs to be balanced, with our commitment as an organisation to the development of our staff and affording them the opportunity to compete for promotion and specialist job roles. We note this question from the Board and will consider how we can address the issue as part of our overall response to the consultation.
We remain committed to Policing with the Community and recognise its absolute centrality to community confidence and police legitimacy. Equally we acknowledge the community expectation of the purposeful visibility of their local police.