The police and crime commissioner for Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly is asking residents who live in the force area to tell her if they think the police deliver value for money.

The question is one of several posed by Alison Hernandez who launched her 2022/23 budget survey last week (December 23).

It comes a week after Home Secretary Priti Patel announced an increase in the amount police forces will receive from central government.

The additional money will in part pay for an increase in police numbers which will see officer numbers in Devon and Cornwall by 188 during the upcoming 2022/23 financial year. The provisional settlement also included plans to boost investigations into serious and organised crime and tackle fraud.

The commissioner is now faced with a decision on setting police precepts – the amount households pay locally towards policing through their council tax bills.

Police and crime commissioners have been given the flexibility to increase this by up to £10 a year for a Band D property for the next three years.

Currently those in Band D households across Devon and Cornwall pay £236.56 a year in their policing precept.

The survey also tackles the question of how easy people find it to get hold of the police and whether people would like to see more police stations open up to the public in Devon and Cornwall.

This is something which will be of interest in West Devon borough, where it is a common complaint that the police are hard to contact.

‘We have had what appears to be a reasonable settlement from central government for Devon and Cornwall,’ said Commissioner Hernandez.

‘It will allow us to continue on our upwards trajectory in police officer numbers that was already being funded by local taxpayers here before the Prime Minister announced the national uplift.

‘This has enabled budgeted force strength to grow by 498 officers since 2016/17 to 3,422 officers this financial year.

‘The force is set to grow by another 188 officers in 2022/23, taking force strength to a record high. This increase is helping to keep Devon and Cornwall as counties with some of the lowest recorded crime rates in the country, but there are still significant challenges ahead.

‘Inflation means the force is facing significant additional costs, crime types like domestic abuse are now being reported and recorded more effectively – this is an extremely welcome development but it means our force is dealing with more calls for help than ever before.’

The commissioner said her focus was now on strengthening, sustaining and stabilising the police force so it was fit to deliver on priorities laid out in the 2021-25 Police and Crime Plan of reducing anti-social behaviour, drugs crime and deaths and serious injuries on the roads.

‘We have to ensure that people are served by a force that is responsive to their needs and victims of crime have swift access to justice and the services they need to help them recover,’ she added.

Commissioner Hernandez published her crime and police plan earlier this month which has made road safety a priority. The plan will also focus on tackling Devon and Cornwall’s drug trade.

The plans include harsh er punishments for drug dealers, providing better access to help for drug users and working to educate people on the dangers of drug use.

People have until midnight January 9 to complete the survey at www.devonandcornwall-pcc.gov.uk.

Results will be published in a report at a Devon and Cornwall police and crime panel meeting on January 28, 2022.