Central District Police welcomes announcement of additional officers

To be attributed to Superintendent Sue Schwalger, Central District Commander:
 
Central District Police welcome the announcement today by the Commissioner and Minister of Police which will see an increase of 67 sworn officers into Central District over the next four years bringing the number of total sworn officers to 740.
  
This investment provides further opportunity for Police to address pressures and expand on the work already being done to make New Zealand the safest country. 
 
New Zealand Police has fundamentally transformed our policing model shifting from a purely response driven model to one that recognises that Police need to make investment decisions across a range of functions including prevention, response, investigation and resolution.  
 
By transforming our deployment model we are now one of the most mobile police services in the world where frontline staff are equipped with the tools and technology they need to spend more time in their communities, where they can make the most difference.
 
There are significant opportunities to utilise our entire workforce in our mission to be the safest country and our commitment to ensure that our people are delivering the greatest impact for our communities.
 
24/7 Response
The direct investment announced in rural Policing is significant for Central District in recognising that our rural communities have different pressures and concerns.   
 
This is great news for our rural communities as we understand and appreciate the value local communities place on their Police service.
 
Expansion of 24/7 response capability to the regional areas of Taumarunui, Stratford, Waipukurau/Dannevirke and Marton improves the ability of our staff to help build safe, resilient rural communities by ensuring 95% of New Zealanders are within close proximity to a 24/7 police presence.  This will strengthen local 24/7 police presence to an additional 35,000 people in Central District over the next four years.
 
We will form a Rural Duties Officer Network ensuring Police remain focused on rural issues, building strong local networks and supporting confident and resilient rural communities. 
 
Additional Investment
Further investment outside of the 24/7 Rural funding will boost Police resources in areas where they are most needed to reduce the number of victims in the community and ensure those who commit crime are held to account for their actions. 
We will be working with our staff, our partners, and our communities to identify opportunities to increase efficiency and to deploy in ways which will make the most difference in our communities. 
 
More details will be provided in the coming months around some of the work our new and existing staff will be doing in these priority areas.
 
ENDS
 
Issued by Police Media Centre.