Inspector makes reassurances over neighbourhood policing (From Streatham Guardian)

Streatham inspector makes reassurances over neighbourhood policing

11:20am Tuesday 30th October 2012 in News By Alice Foster, Reporter

An inspector has rejected rumours that there may no longer be neighbourhood teams in every ward in Lambeth.

Police station closures and staff losses are expected as the Metropolitan Police Service seeks to save £500 million by 2015.

But Streatham Inspector Nick Fallowfield told the Streatham Guardian earlier this month that every ward will still keep an enhanced safer neighbourhood team.

Inspect Fallowfield said: "The Met is trying to see neighbourhood policing as the most important part of the Met and that needs to be supported."

It is not yet known what the new policing model will look like or when changes will start being brought in.

Insp Fallowfield said: "The Met is getting smaller, we all know that. We are getting smaller as an organisation.

"We don’t know actually what the situation is in terms of how many inspectors we are going to have."

He said there may be fewer inspectors, but under current plans numbers for sergeants and police constables "look pretty healthy."

However, he said colleagues in units such as the Crime Investigation Department were more likely to feel the pinch.

He said: "We are moving away from lots of squads."

He added that Lambeth’s safer neighbourhood teams are expected to be back to full strength with an influx of PCSOs next month.

Despite rumours about the possible closure of police stations, such as Gipsy Hill, Clapham and Streatham, he said nothing had been decided.

But he said: "We know we are not going to keep all of the police stations."