Plans to reduce the number of police forces in England and Wales from 43 to as few as 12 have triggered strong reactions from bereaved families and police leaders, who warn the reforms could weaken local accountability and further erode public trust in policing.
The Home Office is preparing a consultation on sweeping reforms that would merge existing regional forces into a smaller number of so-called “mega forces”, as part of a drive to cut bureaucracy, improve efficiency and strengthen the fight against serious and organised crime. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has said performance varies too widely between forces and that a new national structure is needed to deliver consistent standards, faster responses and better outcomes for victims.
Under the plans, large regional forces would focus on complex investigations such as homicide, terrorism, drugs and organised crime, while neighbourhood policing would be delivered through newly defined Local Policing Areas in every town and city. Ministers have also confirmed that the role of Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) will be abolished when current terms end in 2028, with greater control shifting back to central government.
Family of crash victim speaks out
For Tracey Crawshaw, whose 19-year-old son Jacob died in a crash on the A14 in 2021, the proposals are deeply personal. She said talk of force mergers is “deeply distressing and triggering” after what she describes as years of frustration trying to secure accountability from Northamptonshire Police over the handling of the investigation into her son’s death.
During the inquiry, the van driver was drug-tested too late to establish whether substances were in his system at the time of the collision. A retired detective constable now faces gross misconduct proceedings over the case, which remains under scrutiny by the Independent Office for Police Conduct.
Ms Crawshaw said reforms must rebuild trust, not weaken it. She warned that larger, more remote structures risk pushing decision-making further away from grieving families and local communities. “If local accountability and community confidence are not strengthened, this will feel like another step backwards,” she said.
Concerns from police and commissioners
Police and Crime Commissioners from across England have also voiced unease. Hertfordshire PCC Jonathan Ash-Edwards cautioned that “bigger does not mean better”, arguing that regional forces could be slower to respond, less attuned to local priorities and harder for the public to hold to account. He pointed to Scotland’s 2013 move to a single national force, where recent inspections show public confidence has fallen significantly over the past decade.
Norfolk PCC Sarah Taylor warned that detaching the investigation of serious crimes from local oversight would be a “serious misjudgement”, while Thames Valley PCC Matthew Barber said large-scale mergers risk creating a more distant service and higher costs for taxpayers.
Labour’s PCC for Bedfordshire, John Tizard, said closer collaboration between forces was essential to tackle organised crime, but stressed that local policing and specialist units must remain under integrated, locally accountable leadership.
What is already shared across regions
Many forces already operate joint units for counter-terrorism, serious organised crime, roads policing, firearms, forensics and IT. In the East of England, collaboration between Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Hertfordshire, Essex, Kent, Norfolk and Suffolk has saved tens of millions of pounds, while maintaining local command structures. Similar arrangements exist in the Midlands and South East, raising questions about whether full mergers are necessary to achieve efficiency.
Political context and next steps
The proposed restructuring follows calls from senior police leaders for fewer, larger forces and a stronger national capability to tackle cybercrime, fraud and cross-border gangs. A government white paper, due shortly, is expected to set out the case for reform and launch a formal consultation.
For families like the Crawshaws, the debate goes beyond budgets and organisational charts. They say any overhaul must prioritise transparency, swift investigations and genuine accountability at local level, so that victims and communities do not feel abandoned by the very system meant to protect them.