AN INCREASING amount of police time is being spent on public protection work such as managing high-risk offenders and protecting victims who are at risk and often vulnerable, according to new figures.

The first national picture of the breadth and complexity of the work undertaken by the police was published by the College of Policing in January 2015.

It also revealed in the past five years the number of police officers has fallen by 11 per cent – equating to one officer on duty for every 1,753 people living in a force area.

The analysis coincides with a discussion about the demands on policing at Lancashire Police headquarters in Hutton today.

Senior officers and partners from across the country were due to discuss and better understand the changing nature of demand affecting the police.

The event will be opened by Lancashire’s Chief Constable Steve Finnigan, alongside speakers from the College of Policing, HMIC and the London School of Economics.

Chief Constable Steve Finnigan said: “As a police service we are facing diminishing budgets and other resourcing pressures, at a time when statistics show that crime is falling and yet we feel busier than ever.

“The challenges now are to consider emerging crime types, the increased complexity of crimes and investigations and the need for early intervention.

“We are looking to develop our approaches to service delivery, whilst being cognisant of the changing context in which we operate.”

Lancashire Police @LancsPolice will be tweeting live from the event using the hashtag #PoliceDemand.

They will also be tweeting about incidents they are attending throughout the day.