MORE money is to be provided for policing in Tenbury and the surrounding area.

Nationally, funding available to police forces will increase by £813million, with local police in Worcestershire getting a potential £16million. The extra money has been allocated to help police deal with new challenges, like cyber crime and modern day slavery as well as the increase in serious organised crime.

Harriett Baldwin, whose West Worcestershire constituency includes Tenbury, says that it is the biggest funding increase since 2010.

“When I last met with John Campion, the West Mercia Police and Crime Commissioner, we talked about the importance of dealing with the impact of serious organised crime and the impact of cashpoint thefts on our rural communities,” said Mrs Baldwin, who said more officers are being recruited.

“The force has already announced it is looking to recruit 100 more officers and I hope that this money will mean more visible policing, in particular for our rural areas.

“I welcome this announcement by the Home Office to deliver an important increase in funding and look forward to catching up with the West Mercia police leadership team to hear their spending plans in due course.”