Policing White Paper – Implications for Local Government From local to national: a new model for policing: LGA Briefing 29 January 2026

On 26 January 2026, the Government published a Policing White Paper setting out proposals for the most significant reforms to policing in England and Wales for a generation. The White Paper seeks to address challenges in police performance, public confidence and the ability of policing to respond to serious and complex crime - whilst also restoring neighbourhood policing.

The proposals include greater national direction and consistency, the creation of new national policing functions, structural reform of local forces and stronger performance management. These changes will have direct and indirect implications for Community Safety Partnerships (CSPs), councils and communities.

Local government has a critical stake in ensuring that reforms strengthen – rather than weaken – place-based prevention, democratic accountability and effective partnership working.

A new national model for policing

The White Paper proposes a shift towards a more national policing model, including:

• The creation of new national policing capabilities to deal with serious and complex crime that operates across force boundaries.
• Stronger national standards, guidance, and performance frameworks applying to all forces.
• Greater central oversight of police performance and leadership.

The stated aim is to reduce fragmentation, improve consistency and ensure that specialist capabilities are available everywhere.

Structural reform of police forces

The Government proposes reducing the number of police forces in England and Wales - moving from the current 43 forces to an unspecified smaller number of larger, more resilient forces. This is intended to:

• Improve strategic capacity and financial sustainability.
• Support consistent delivery of specialist functions.
• Reduce duplication and inefficiency.

The White Paper acknowledges that structural change would be phased and subject to further consultation.

Neighbourhood policing and local presence

Alongside national reform, the White Paper places strong emphasis on restoring neighbourhood policing, including:

• Clear expectations on visible local policing and named neighbourhood officers.
• Reducing bureaucracy to free up officer time.
• Improving police responsiveness to local concerns.

The Government positions neighbourhood policing as essential to public confidence and crime prevention.

Performance, accountability and leadership

Proposals include:

• A new national police performance framework with clearer benchmarks and intervention thresholds.
• Stronger powers for the Home Secretary to intervene where forces are underperforming.
• Reforms to leadership, recruitment, and professional standards, including attracting specialist skills into policing.

These changes would significantly alter the current balance between local autonomy and national oversight.

Partnership working and prevention

The White Paper recognises the importance of partnership working in tackling crime and antisocial behaviour, including collaboration with local authorities, health and other agencies. However, detail on how partnership arrangements will operate within the new national model is limited.

Whilst there is only one reference to CPSPs, there is a commitment to reforming, strengthening and rationalising the current fragmented landscape of partnerships and bodies to create a more focused approach. 

Facial recognition and police use of technology

The White Paper signals an expansion in the use of data, technology and advanced analytics by policing, including the wider deployment of facial recognition technology (FRT). This includes both live facial recognition (LFR) used in public spaces and retrospective facial recognition used to identify suspects from images and footage.

The Government presents facial recognition as a tool to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of policing, particularly in tackling serious crime, identifying wanted individuals more quickly and making better use of limited officer resources. The White Paper emphasises the role of national standards, stronger governance and clearer oversight to support public confidence in the use of these technologies.

The LGA Safer and Stronger Communities Lead Members are considering a submission to the government’s consultation on a new legal framework for law enforcement use of biometrics, facial recognition and similar technologies. The LGA Safer and Stronger Communities Committee are considering a paper on the use f public sector cameras.

Fire and Rescue Services (FRSs)

While the White Paper is primarily focused on policing, it has implications for Fire and Rescue Services (FRS) through its emphasis on greater national coordination, interoperability between emergency services and the use of shared governance, data and technology. The Government signals an intention to build on collaboration between police, fire and ambulance services, particularly in relation to serious incidents, resilience and emergency response.

The White Paper also reflects a broader direction of travel towards more consistent national standards, stronger performance oversight and clearer accountability across public safety services.

Community safety responsibilities

Councils retain statutory duties relating to community safety, crime and disorder reduction, antisocial behaviour, safeguarding and public protection. Any changes to policing structures or priorities will have knock-on effects for:

• Community Safety Partnerships and local governance arrangements.
• Joint problem-solving and early intervention activity.
• Alignment between police priorities and local place-based strategies.

Democratic accountability

Local government has a strong interest in ensuring that reforms do not weaken local accountability or the ability of communities to influence policing priorities. Structural reform and increased national direction raise important questions about:

• The future of existing accountability mechanisms.
• How local voices will be heard within larger, more centralised policing structures.
• The role of councils in holding policing to account for neighbourhood-level outcomes.

Prevention and public services

Councils play a leading role in prevention through housing, youth services, public health, environmental services, and early help. The effectiveness of policing reform will depend on:

• Sustained investment in preventative services.
• Clear alignment between policing, public health and local government approaches.
• Avoiding cost-shunting from national policing reforms onto already stretched local services.

Funding and capacity

The White Paper has implications for local government funding and capacity, including:

• Potential transitional costs associated with force mergers or new structures.
• Pressures on council-funded community safety and antisocial behaviour services if police capacity or priorities shift.
• The need for clarity on how national reforms will be funded and sustained.

The LGA Safer and Stronger Communities Lead Members have agreed the LGA will be pursuing: