HC Deb 29 April 2003 vol 404 cc360-1W
Mr. Steen

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what(a) the total cost and (b) the cost per officer was of recruiting and training new police constables for each police service in England and Wales in each of the last three years. [108639]

Mr. Bob Ainsworth

No central records are kept of the overall cost of recruiting or training new police constables for each police service in England and Wales.

However, Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) as part of the thematic inspection of probationary police training in England and Wales attempted to ascertain the investment involved in providing probationer training on a national basis. The total cost of the Probationer Training Programme for 2000–01 was £162,925,544. A breakdown by force was published in "Training Matters": A HMIC thematic inspection of probationer police training in England and Wales 2002.

When determining rates of payment for the Crime Fighting Fund, it was agreed with the Association of Chief Police Officers and the Association of Police Authorities that £1,000 should be included for the recruitment of each new officer. This was up-rated to £1,056 in 2002–03.

Forward to