NEIGHBOURHOOD policing numbers are being slashed in East Lancashire in a radical shake-up of policing resources, with critics saying it will mean an end to the ‘bobby on the beat’.

The move will see the number of constables in the area’s six Neighbourhood Policing Teams (NPTs) - Blackburn with Darwen, Hyndburn, Burnley, the Ribble Valley, Pendle and Rossendale - dramatically reduced.

Bosses have refused to release figures, despite requests, but the Lancashire Telegraph understands in Hyndburn PC numbers will reduce from 14 to 7 and from 13 to six in Pendle.

Officers wanting to stay within neighbourhood teams are being interviewed for their own jobs, while across Lancashire 15 roles have been created in CID departments, 55 in response and others in targeted crime teams.

No redundancies are being made as a result of the changes, which have been described as a ‘redeployment of resources’ by the force and are expected to come in this year.

Officers moving out of neighbourhood policing would take up an alternative role within the town, a police spokesman said. PCSO numbers will not be affected.

One serving officer, who did not want to be identified, said: “With these cuts people will see a loss of bobbies on the beat. As our numbers are cut our workload will double. People aren’t going to stop ringing in. I don’t think these changes will have anything but a negative impact on communities. The Chief Constable (Andy Rhodes) is very supportive. We have all been spoken to about the impact of the cuts and the deck of cards he has been given to deal out. Something has to give somewhere. Unfortunately I am one of the ones.

“As an officer it is disheartening. I joined to help my community. We are being left with a community in which we won’t be able to service the demand.”

Cllr David Whipp, who sits on the police and crime panel, said: “To my mind these changes will see an end to neighbourhood policing as we know it. It’s some 20 years ago that Lancashire established its neighbourhood policing model. I believe it has been wholly successful.

“But it has been whittled away at. This will be a devastating blow. The number of so-called neighbourhood officers will be such that the area they will have to cover will be enormous.”

The changes come on the back of a public consultation in which participants were asked to divulge their policing priorities. MPs and council chief executives were also consulted.

Since 2010 the force has cut £84million from its budget, which resulted in a reduction of 800 police officers and 350 staff. A further £18million budget savings are expected to be required by 2022.

Assistant Chief Constable Terry Woods said the force had responded to feedback from surveys and meetings and reallocated resources “to answer the phone quicker, respond more effectively, target offenders and look after the vulnerable”.

Mr Woods said: “This will mean increasing the number of police control room operators, response officers and investigators as well as introducing new target teams and safeguarding hubs. This should help to ensure we can meet the public’s expectations and that we have the structure needed now and in the future to meet the demands we are facing. However, there is no new money; in fact, we still need to save money so we will need to re-align resources.

“We will do this by modernising neighbourhood policing; something which all police forces are looking at in partnership with the College of Policing and which we will spearhead along with a small number of other forces.

“PCSO numbers will remain unchanged, but in order to re-align resources to other areas we will need to re-shape our neighbourhood policing offer.

“Lancashire remains committed to Neighbourhood Policing which is why we have protected this area for so long and why we will be working closely with the College of Policing on the redesign and modernisation of our neighbourhood policing service.

“We will still have over 500 officers and staff working in neighbourhood policing supporting by a further 2,500 working in each place across Lancashire.”

Police and crime commissioner Clive Grunshaw said: “I am confident that these changes will help to better meet public expectations, alongside the increasingly complex demands the service is facing. The number of officers patrolling and keeping people safe remains the same, but these changes are driven by a changing demand on the service.”

“Changing and increasing demand means that local policing is made up of far more than just neighbourhood policing. Officers are needed to do different roles so they can be there when the public really need them, dealing with increasingly complex issues such as cybercrime, child and adult exploitation and online abuse.

“Since 2010 the Constabulary has had to make savings of £84m which has resulted in a reduction of 800 police officers and 350 staff and with an additional £18m expected to be required by 2022 there are increasingly fewer places to make savings. I continue to lobby the government for fairer funding for policing and to stop shifting the burden of police funding onto council tax payers.

“At the same time Lancashire has experienced a rise in reported crime, with the emergency 999 and 101 service receiving thousands more calls than they did in previous years. The Constabulary is also feeling the effect of cut backs affecting other services and partners.

“Both the Chief Constable and I are determined that the Constabulary stays connected with the communities we serve. I have protected funding for our PCSOs and these changes will mean they will be freed up to dedicate more of their time to local issues that really matter to people.”

Lancashire Police Federation was unavailable for comment.