Almost half of people living in England and Wales have not seen a uniformed police or community support officer on foot in their area in the past year, a study has found, raising concerns over the erosion of neighbourhood policing.

The proportion who said they had not seen a uniformed officer in their area was 44% this year – up from 41% in 2016 and 36% in 2015.

More than 80% of people questioned felt it was important to have a regular uniformed police presence in their area, but only 17% believed they had this locally.

The results were part of a survey to gauge perceptions of crime, safety and local policing carried out by for HM Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS).

Of the 12,662 people asked, 25% said the service provided by local police had worsened in the last year, an increase from 20% in 2016.

Despite the findings, most participants said they associated policing with positive attributes, while twice as many who expressed a view would speak highly about their local force as would be critical.



Andy Fittes, general secretary of the Police Federation of England and Wales, said: “The findings of the survey are disappointing but come as no surprise.



“There is no getting away from the fact that we simply do not have the resources to patrol as we once would have done.

“Police chiefs are having to make tough choices and to prioritise things like terrorism and public order events and ensure that the critical incidents such as responding to 999 calls are dealt with.

We simply do not have the resources to patrol as we once would have done. Andy Fittes of the Police Federation of England and Wales

“All these have to take priority over walking the beat and carrying out the sort of proactive policing that the public wants.”

But Richard Garside, director of the Centre for Crime and Justice Studies, said cuts to police officer numbers have resulted in a reduction in unnecessary patrols.

He said: “Mere visibility is not a useful measure of effective and accountable policing.”

The research also found a marked increase in confidence in the police to provide protection during a terrorist attack.

More than half (55%) said they would be “very” or “fairly” confident in police dealing with such an incident, compared with 46% in 2016.



The percentage saying they had not seen uniformed personnel in a vehicle in the past year was 12%.

Matt Parr, an inspector at HMICFRS, said: “After a year in which the emergency services have faced some of the most challenging incidents in recent times, it is encouraging to see that the public’s confidence in the police to protect them against terrorism has increased markedly.”



He added that the importance of visible local policing “continues to resonate with the public”.



Sara Thornton, chair of the National Police Chiefs’ Council, said increased confidence in the police service is “a real testament to the courage and professionalism of all of our officers and staff”.



She added: “We know that local policing is absolutely crucial to countering terrorist plots, disrupting serious and organised crime networks and safeguarding the most vulnerable in society, so all chief constables are working hard to ensure the service is as visible and approachable as possible.”

A Home Office spokesman said: “Effective local policing has always been about more than just officers’ visibility – never more so than now, with crime increasingly taking place behind closed doors and online.”