The Police Association has delivered a warning to Police: its proposed staffing shake-up in Canterbury risks gutting prevention work and abandoning rural communities, all to meet short-term pressures in urban centres.

Canterbury District Commander Superintendent Tony Hill says the Canterbury District Review is an effort to “boost core policing services” and “strengthen our ability to meet demand, now and in the future”. He has repeatedly said that no stations will close, but that staff will be deployed in other ways.

The association sees it differently.

In a detailed submission on the proposal, it says the review, which would disestablish or downgrade 14 rural constable roles, replace them with cheaper rural liaison positions, and cull station support roles and school and family harm specialists, is “short sighted” and “appears to have been done with financial savings in mind” rather than need.

Association president Chris Cahill says the review fails to balance the demands of growing urban populations with the needs of rural communities, warning: “Robbing Peter to pay Paul is not the answer.”

The association says the plan is reactive and underestimates growth in Selwyn and Waimakariri, two of New Zealand’s fastest-expanding districts. 

“This is a ‘fix for now’, not a long-term view,” its submission says, pointing out that, based on population and geography, Selwyn alone should have about 160 officers to meet the accepted national staffing ratio of one officer to every 480 people – unfeasible, it admits, but a good indicator of the workload rural officers carry.

From local faces to liaison

At the heart of the association’s concerns is the proposed replacement of long-serving Band H rural officers – who live in and police their communities – with rural liaison officers (RLOs) who would likely work nine-to-five and not be on call. 

The association argues that rural policing’s greatest strength – its quiet prevention and early intervention work – is invisible in call-for-service statistics. 

“Prevention comes from community engagement and developing relationships,” the submission says. “These are vital to the success of 1-, 2- and 3-person stations. The legitimacy of rural policing is often predicated on the physical presence of a local officer.”

Chris reinforced that message: “The benefits of rural policing are rarely reflected in statistics. The test of police efficiency is the absence of crime and disorder, not the visible evidence of police action in dealing with them.”

The warnings echo the mood of the wider Canterbury community. Hundreds turned out to meetings in Amberley, Culverden, Waimate and Temuka in August, with protests and petitions highlighting fears of slower responses, weaker ties and increased crime.

Waimate’s mayor called the proposal a risk to disaster response; Federated Farmers labelled it “short-sighted and dangerous”; and one Waimate resident told The Timaru Courier: “When things go pear-shaped, [police] are the people we look to for help. Until something else is in place, this feels unsafe.”

Chris agrees that the review ignores the risk of natural disasters and also cites the value of local knowledge. 

“Rural officers who understand the geography and have strong relationships are critical to effective disaster response,” the submission notes.

Prevention on chopping block

The submission also warns of consequences beyond rural response. 

In all, 21 Police employee roles are to be disestablished – mostly station support officers (SSOs) and watchhouse roles. Only six employee roles have been created for which they could apply, three roles move from non-sworn to constabulary positions and four new authorised officer (AO) positions would replace some front counter duties. 

The association has challenged the legality of this part of the review: “[The proposal to use] AOs on front counters does not comply with Section 24 and Schedule 1 of the Policing Act 2008,” its submission says. “The Act clearly states that AOs can only be used in guarding, custody, specialist investigators, and traffic-related enforcement.”

Regardless, the association maintains that Police is underestimating the service SSOs provide to stations, staff and the community, saying they are much more than just “front counter”. “The considerable skills, knowledge and experience the employees who perform this role have should be valued. They are an essential, prized resource.” 

In its submission, it implores Police to consider that, if it insists on AOs picking up this work, that the transition be done in stages via attrition. 

Meanwhile, school community officers (SCOs), family harm specialists and child-focused case managers are also targeted for reduction. The association says cutting SCO numbers from 11 to 5 will “dramatically affect” services to the point it will be unachievable, with each officer responsible for scores of schools. 

“These are the very staff who provide early intervention, positive role modelling and enable safe avenues for children to disclose abuse,” the submission says. “Public safety team (PST) staff cannot undertake this work. It requires specialist skills and trust built over time.”

On family harm, the submission points to Canterbury Rural’s huge area and growing population: 174,000 people over 17,200 square kilometres, yet just one dedicated family harm officer under the proposal.

“Canterbury Rural is 615% larger than Christchurch Metro and has 43% of its population – yet will have only 4% of the staff Christchurch has.”

The bottom line

For the association, the risk is clear: “Moving to a purely ‘responding to demand’ model will see an increase in crime events because it takes a ‘mop up after it happens’ approach, rather than providing resource to keep crime to a minimum. It will not prevent offending and it will severely erode community relationships, reducing trust and confidence in Police.”

It urges Police “to stay with the tried-and-true model of rural Band H officers”.

“This allows their workforce to be agile, self-sustainable and provide the service appropriate for rural communities. The current proposal is a red-pen effect that does not truly consider the impact it will have on these communities.”

The association hopes Police has heard the 999 other voices who swamped them with submissions. 

After submissions closed, District Commander Superintendent Tony Hill said the process “has been invaluable and has reinforced for me that we need to take more time with some aspects of the proposal and to keep tracking with others”. No date has been set for a final decision.

Footnote: The Police Association is aware that reviews are in the pipeline in Central and Counties Manukau districts.


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