“We in the West Midlands have been ripped off and short changed for too long. Enough is enough. Progress on local government funding should be matched in policing. We must end this national scandal as a matter of urgency.”
That is the message from West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner, Simon Foster, who has called on the government to reform funding of policing, matching the progress that is being made in local government.
West Midlands PCC Simon Foster said: “I welcome the government’s announcement that ‘outdated local government funding formulas that penalised deprived areas for decades are being scrapped, so local people finally get the vital public services they deserve, no matter where they live’.
“It is even more encouraging that the reforms will be ‘backed by a £5 billion boost for local services over the next three years to correct historic imbalances and level the playing field’, delivering what government is calling a ‘national renewal for the long term’.
“This new approach will do much to improve public services in some of the most deprived areas in the West Midlands.
“However, every line in the government’s statement setting out the need for change, could equally be said about policing.
“Policing is also stuck with an ‘outdated…funding system based on decades-old data that has entrenched inequality… while less deprived areas have benefited disproportionately.’
“I call on government to do for policing, what it is doing for local government, namely ‘reverse this injustice’ and ensure policing ‘will be funded fairly, based on the latest deprivation data and local need, so that communities with the highest demands get the public services they rightly deserve’.
“This problem has existed for years. As His Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Constabulary said back in September 2025, the way police funding is distributed still needs to change, because it is outdated and unfair.
“The consequence for the West Midlands, is that we still have nearly 700 fewer police officers than we did in 2010 and a funding formula that disproportionately disadvantages the region, in the sum of about £40 million a year. This is despite rising demand and increasing complexity in the nature of crime.
“The majority of other police force areas now have as many, if not more, police officers than they had in 2010 and in many cases, more police officers, than they have ever had in their force histories. That is not fair and it is not just. Here in the West Midlands, we have been short changed and ripped off for far too long. I call on the government to right this wrong as a matter of urgency.
“We need a fair funding model, that reflects the pressures on policing in the West Midlands. The existing formula is unfit for purpose. It fails to take account of the scale of demand, from serious organised crime to safeguarding vulnerable people. This is not about more money. It is about ensuring a fairer allocation of existing funding, to keep our people, families, businesses and communities safe and secure.
“Frankly, the failure to reform police funding is a national scandal. Successive governments have failed to reform policing funding for over a decade, and there is still no sign of progress. That is inexplicable, inexcusable and unacceptable. This is the police reform, we need in the West Midlands.
“The announcement from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government adds insult to injury. Why can funding for local government be made ‘fairer and simpler’, but not funding for policing? If MHCLG can do it, there is no excuse as to why the Home Office cannot do it. It is simply a lack of political will.
“The Home Office and MHCLG share the same building in Whitehall. I would respectfully request that Home Office officials should get up from their desks, walk down the corridor and share some thinking too, so that we can end this national scandal.”
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