FEARS have been expressed that policing in East Hampshire will be sacrificed in favour of the countyÕs more urban areas, with officers being moved from the districtÕs stations.
This would be to enable the two stations to cope with the reduction in numbers.
The Herald understands that total of 10 officers are being ÒlostÓ from Central Hampshire DivisionÕs police stations with three set to go from each of Whitehill, Alton and Petersfield.
The Whitehill station - which covers Bordon, Liphook, Lindford, Headley and Greatham - currently has 27 police officers and will be reduced to 24.
Furthermore, one other officer will go from one of the other stations in the Central Hampshire Division.
It is believed that three will go from the Whitehill and Petersfield stations by the end of this month and the rest will be relocated by early next year.
All 10 of the officers are being moved to more urban areas, especially in the south of the county, to tackle higher levels of crime but it is feared that this will leave the officers left to cover East Hampshire stretched.
One Hampshire Constabulary employee, who does not want to be identified, is very concerned about the reduction in numbers and fears that the changes were being done without the knowledge of local residents and councillors.
They have appealed for community leaders, especially town and parish councils, to try to put a stop to it.
The employee said: ÒThis is going to happen and I donÕt know if the town councils know about it.
ÒI hope that there is going to be some sort of local campaign to stop this from happening.Ó
The employee told The Herald that the news came at a time when the population needing policing looks set to increase which is causing even more worry to many officers. They explained: ÒThis is causing some concern. Because the Army are pulling out of Bordon the MoD police, who help (Whitehill officers) out in some cases, are going to be significantly reduced in numbers.
ÒWith the married quarters going to civilians it all means that there is going to be a increase in the number of citizens that need policing in the Whitehill and Bordon area while the number of officers is reducing.Ó
On top of this, one of the greatest fears is that officers in Whitehill and Petersfield will be pooled to create one shift covering both towns and the surrounding villages as a way of coping with the reduced numbers.
There is a similar pooled shift system operating in the Havant and Waterlooville area at present with officers policing the Waterlooville area now operating out of Havant police station.
It is feared that the move would have a serious impact on response times in East Hampshire.
ÒThere is the potential for officers from Whitehill and Petersfield being merged together,Ó the employee said.
ÒThe Petersfield police station would still be open but the officers will operate in a pooled shift from Whitehill rather than two separate shifts from two stations.
ÒThis will leave officers with a massive area to cover.
ÒOfficers will be expected to patrol an area from Grayshott and Bramshott in the north all the way down as far as Queen Elizabeth Country Park. It will be a huge, huge area.
ÒIt could take up to half an hour to respond to an incident if officers are at one end and the incident is at the other end.Ó
The employee said that on top of the reduced numbers, the officers would have to cope with officers being absent when they are on holiday or on training courses.
ÒYou have the potential to often have one person per shift less because of things like annual leave, illness and training courses,Ó they explained.
ÒYou have the potential for there to be a shift of only something like four officers who could be covering the Whitehill and Petersfield areas at any one time.
ÒAll it takes is for there to be one violent prisoner to take up the time of two officers and you would have two officers left to cover the whole area.Ó
In addition to police officers moving, the employee also told The Herald that there is a potential for other behind-the-scenes staff, who process paperwork and do other duties, being moved on to other stations.
Some posts will be ÒlostÓ as when staff leave and they will not be replaced.
ÒPeople are not just being taken from the frontline, it is potentially from throughout the service,Ó the employee added.
Gareth Jones, deputy divisional commander, confirmed that there would be a reduction in numbers but told The Herald that officers at both Whitehill and Petersfield were being consulted about the changes.
He said: ÒAt this moment in time it is a proposal and subject to staff consultation. There will be officers transferred from Petersfield and Whitehill. We are not sure of numbers, either two or three at both locations.
ÒBoth stations will still have police officers working at them. There may be some arrangement where we group officers together to provide the best service. One proposal is joint working between the two stations. That is still subject to staff consultation.
ÒWhat is important is the reason why officers are being transferred, not just from Petersfield and Whitehill, it will be a loss of officers at other stations in Central Hampshire.
ÒThe reason for that is the eesource allocation formula, which consists of a number of different variables. The conclusion of that is that some divisions are deemed to have high work loads, which means they should have more officers, and Central Hampshire is deemed to have fewer officers. It is a sophisticated way of measuring where people should be.
ÒI would hope we would be reaching a final decision in two or three weeks. Once a decision is made, the nuts and bolts, the mechanics of how it works, will be decided.Ó