Police Force Mergers

Police force mergers: Residents consultation outcome 

The consultation launched by the Police and Crime Commissioner in May 2026 to understand the public’s views on the Government’s proposal to merge police forces in England and Wales has now closed.

The plans could see the current 43 police forces across England and Wales reduced to as few as 12 larger, regional forces, marking the biggest overhaul of policing in over six decades. 

3,697 Hertfordshire residents, businesses and community groups responded to the consultation across six weeks, demonstrating how strongly the public feel about the proposals locally.  

A large majority of respondents did not approve of the Government’s plans with 68% opposing police mergers compared to only 15% who support them. Slower response times to emergency calls, fewer visible police patrols in neighbourhoods and local policing being overshadowed by regional priorities were amongst residents’ top concerns. 

The Police and Crime Commissioner has written to the Home Secretary to share these findings (The Letter) Given residents’ clear opposition, the Commissioner is calling on the Home Secretary and new Prime Minister to consider abandoning plans for police force mergers.

The full findings of the consultation can be found here. 

Thank you to everyone who completed the consultation. 

If you are interested in learning more about the police force merger plans, please see further information below.  

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

What are the proposals around merging police forces?

As part of a wider package of police reform, the Government has proposed merging police forces across England and Wales. This could result in the existing 43 police forces being reduced to as few as 12.

Why are the mergers being proposed?

The Government believes that the current policing structure of 43 separate forces is not best suited to deal with modern crime which is increasingly complex, involving serious organised crime and technology-based crime, requiring cross-border collaboration.

Currently, forces range significantly in the number of police officers and crime levels meaning the Government believes that people across England and Wales aren’t receiving a consistent police service.

What is the independent review of police force structures?

The Government has established an independent review to make recommendations on the optimum number of police forces and which forces should be merged. The review is being chaired by Lord Bernard Hogan-Howe, former Commissioner of the Met Police and supported by an advisory committee.

The Chair and advisory committee are not engaging with members of the public as part of the review.

The review will deliver their final report to Government by the end of the summer 2026.

Will Hertfordshire’s police force be merged?

The Government has said it plans to “significantly reduce” the number of police forces and it is highly likely that the majority of forces across England and Wales will be impacted.

No information indicating which police forces will be joined together has been published by the Government so far. The independent review will provide advice on which forces should be combined. Hertfordshire Constabulary could be merged with one or several force areas in the East of England.

Hertfordshire already partners with other force areas in a significant capacity which could also impact the Government’s decision-making process. These partnerships are:

·         BCH (Beds, Cambs, Herts) – Hertfordshire is part of a strategic alliance with Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire meaning the three counties share specialist operational functions (armed policing, roads policing, forensics and major crime investigations) and support functions (criminal justice, road collision investigations, DBS checks, firearms licensing, HR, payroll and ICT).

·         Seven Force Strategic Collaboration Programme – Hertfordshire is part of a shared initiative with Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex and Kent (Eastern Region) to join up procurement to target better use of resources and cost efficiencies.

What are the potential benefits of merging police forces in England and Wales?

The Government has said that replacing existing forces with fewer, larger forces could:

·         Deliver a more consistent, fairer police service to people across England and Wales;

·         Cut costs by reducing the number of separate headquarters and back-office functions that each police force requires;

·         Strengthen specialist policing capabilities (such as cybercrime and firearms) without diverting individual forces’ resources away from local policing;

·         Better equip larger forces to respond to major incidents.

What are the potential risks of merging police forces in England and Wales?

Some people have expressed concerns that merging police forces could:

·         Weaken the connection between police and the communities they serve;

·         Divert resources away from towns and rural areas towards cities and large urban areas;

·         Lengthen police response times with forces’ head offices based further away and serving larging areas;

·         Increase costs with taxpayers’ money funding expensive merger operations rather than frontline policing;

·         Disrupt vital community services including for victims and vulnerable people;

·         Lead to a loss of local accountability for the police.

How will day-to-day policing in Hertfordshire be affected?

The Government hasn’t confirmed which police forces will be merged meaning we don’t yet know how Hertfordshire’s police force will be affected. We also don’t yet know how regional forces focusing on major crime will interact with local neighbourhood policing. 

Hertfordshire could be merged with areas with higher crime rates or higher incidences of certain crime types which influences how the larger force allocates resources. The abolition of Police and Crime Commissioners means that the public may not have any direct ability to influence these decisions.

Have police force mergers been proposed before?

Yes, similar proposals were put forward in 2006. At that time, Chief Constables, local police authorities (prior to the role of PCCs being created) and politicians strongly opposed them on the grounds that the changes would be both difficult to implement and weaken accountability.

The 2006 proposals also required Council Tax to rise and be equalised across large areas which the Government at the time ultimately chose not to approve.

When would the proposed changes take affect?

While the Government has confirmed their intention to “significantly reduce” the number of police forces in England and Wales by the end of the next parliament, it is not known exactly when the changes will take effect.

What will the PCC do with responses to the consultation?

The PCC will present the feedback he receives to the Government as part of his wider engagement to ensure the police reform proposals reflect the interests of Hertfordshire residents.

Updates on the progress of the review and the and the PCC’s work to engage with the Government on this issue will be shared on this website.

Where can I find more information about the proposals?

The information above has been collected by the PCC’s office from various sources, including the Government’s white paper. Further information can be found on the following websites:

·         Government’s white paper ‘From local to national: a new model for policing’ explaining the wider package of policing reforms - here 

·         Independent review of police force structures: terms of reference - here

·         The PCC, Jonathan Ash-Edwards’ response to the Government’s white paper - here

·         The National Police Chiefs’ Council’s response to the Government’s white paper - here

·         The Chair of the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners’ response to the Government’s white paper – here