Crime Commissioner blogs on 'huge potential benefit' of police sponsorship

A police tsar has held talks with a possible sponsor for his force in a bid to survive "austere times with a shrinking budget and workforce".

Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) for Dorset, Martyn Underhill is considering private sponsorship, on an arrangement involving all five PCCs in the south west region.

The former detective chief inspector for Sussex Police wrote on his blog that he could see a "huge potential benefit to forming appropriate sponsorship relationships with reputable organisations".

The 43 police forces across England and Wales face funding cuts of up to 20% by 2015.

Mr Underhill, who was second-in-charge in the Sarah Payne child murder case, said:

Read: Former detective chief inspector: 'Police are sending out conflicting messages'

At a crime reduction event last Friday Mr Underhill met a possible sponsor, and will ask for the issue to be added to the agenda at the next regional PCCs and chief constables meeting.

He went on:

But he added:

Read: Independent candidate wins in Dorset

PCCs, which replaced existing police authorities in 41 force areas across England and Wales, were handed the power to set force budgets and even hire and fire chief constables.

Clive Chamberlain, chairman of Dorset Police Federation, said Mr Underhill "rightly recognises" the force is the lowest funded in the country and fully supported his efforts to lobby government for more funding. He said: