'Olympics help will not disrupt county policing'

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POLICE chiefs insist the county will not suffer when more than 160 officers travel south this summer to help police the Olympic Games.

Warwickshire Police officers will help for a total of 60 days, travelling to various events in the Olympic and Paralympic calendar between June 4 and September 16.

Bosses say final planning for deployments is underway but the majority of officers will support the Metropolitan Police and Dorset Police - the two forces with the biggest operations.

The commitment of the force varies each day, ranging from a maximum of 59 officers to as low as just two officers on others.

In total, but not on any one day, around 166 individual officers from Warwickshire Police will contribute to keeping the Games secure.

Force chiefs insist they have adopted a range of measures to maximise the number of officers available to assist with the Games while continuing to police the county, despite recent cuts to manpower.

Annual leave has been restricted across the force for the duration of the Games and the Special Constabulary and volunteers will play an important role.

Asst Chief Constable of Warwickshire Police, Guy Rutter, said: "We are proud our officers are part of the skilled team who will police the Games, this is a once in a generation opportunity.

"We would like to reassure the residents of Warwickshire that we have a good level of officers and staff remaining in our force area to maintain core policing.

"We remain committed to serving and protecting our communities. Local people should not notice any depreciation in the service we provide. We look forward to welcoming the torch to Warwickshire on July 1."

Overseen by AC Chris Allison, the National Olympic Security Coordinator, a total of 52 forces have worked together to resource the 105-day long national policing.

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