Havering Feels Unsafe: Anger Should Not Be Aimed At The Officers On The Ground Who Are Doing Their Best. It Should Be At Those Who Made The Decisions To Cut, Strip, And Dismantle Policing.

The impact of those decisions to cut policing numbers has now reached crisis point.

For years, police officers have warned those in power that continuous cuts to police numbers and the demoralisation of the workforce would have serious consequences. Yesterday, outside Romford Town Hall, those consequences were laid bare. Women—and men—spoke openly about how unsafe they now feel across Havering, especially in public spaces, parks, and even their own neighbourhoods. It was a protest not just about policing, but about feeling forgotten.

The officers we do have in Havering are doing a truly remarkable job under immense pressure. They are dedicated, often local themselves, with families in the area and a real desire to see our streets safe. But they are working with dwindling resources. They are moved across the borough like chess pieces—reassigned daily just to maintain the most basic level of visible policing.

And when large-scale protests or events happen in central London, these already limited officers are pulled away to cover them—leaving boroughs like Havering exposed. But here’s the kicker: their workload here doesn’t vanish while they’re gone. It stacks up. And when they return, they face frustrated residents whose reported crimes have gone unresolved.

Residents want answers. Women don’t feel safe. Incidents of flashing in parks, harassment, break-ins, and anti-social behaviour are repeatedly reported—and repeatedly met with silence or inaction, not because officers don’t care, but because there simply aren’t enough of them.

This isn’t an attack on our frontline officers. Far from it. It’s a call to look at the root of the issue. These are not problems caused by the officers in Havering—but by those who’ve been making cuts for over a decade.

Despite covering nearly 9 million people, the Metropolitan Police Service is currently operating with historically low staffing levels. As of early 2025, the Met has about 310 officers per 100,000 residents, a sharp drop from 342 in 2023. By comparison, England and Wales average about 241 per 100,000—and even that is widely regarded as insufficient for modern demands.

In 2024 alone, the Met lost more than 1,000 full-time officers, and retention continues to fall. The average frontline officer now lasts just four years in the job. Morale is plummeting, and public confidence is sliding right alongside it.

So when women stand up at a protest to say they don’t feel safe in the borough, it matters. When a woman tells us she was flashed in a park twice—and saw no justice—it matters. When another tells us she reported sexual harassment by offenders on community payback, only to find the supervisor smoking cannabis and unwilling to act—it matters. These are not isolated stories.

Let’s be clear: our anger should not be aimed at the officers on the ground who are doing their absolute best. Let it be levelled squarely at those who made the decisions to cut, strip, and dismantle community policing. The impact of those decisions has now reached crisis point.

And while our officers are still doing their best—juggling impossible caseloads, fielding calls they simply cannot respond to, and sacrificing family time to hold it all together—they are only human. They need support, funding, and proper staffing. Not just for their sake—but for ours.

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