Royal Parks Police Axed as Met Looks to Balance Budget
Part of staff reduction of 1,700 to save £260 million
A Parks Police buggy. Picture: Facebook
April 3, 2025
The Metropolitan Police has confirmed that the Royal Parks Police is to be disbanded as part of a cost cutting programme.
The service announced the move as part of a package of measures that will see its staff numbers reduced by 1,700 in an attempt to close a £260million budget shortfall.
The demise of the parks service had been widely feared but the Met says it had to make "substantial tough choices".
This will mean that there will no longer be a dedicated police team for Richmond Park.
Richmond Council leader, Liberal Democrat Gareth Roberts, said disbanding the Royal Parks Police was a "huge mistake". He fears that the loss of specialist skills will be critical and that the local Safer Neighbourhoods teams who will take over responsibility for the park will struggle because of the large area they will need to cover.
He added, “The Royal Parks Police provide a vital service, ensuring our parks remain safe and well-managed. Their work includes enforcing park regulations and responding to incidents quickly and effectively. Losing this specialist team places an additional burden on already overstretched local policing resources and risks leaving our parks unprotected.
“Our parks are essential for residents’ health and wellbeing. They must remain safe, and we will continue to push for the resources needed to protect them.”
Originally bigger cuts were feared but extra funding from the government and the Mayor of London reduced the number of staff that are to be let go.
The intention is not to make anyone redundant but to make the savings by recruiting fewer people and not replacing those who decide to leave.
Other spending cuts include a reduction in spending on forensics, an end to the deployment of officers in schools, a 25% cut in the funding for mounted police and a 7% cut for dog teams. A proposal to end the arming of the Flying Squad is also being considered.
However, the Met says it will aim to avoid reductions in staffing of neighbourhood teams and efforts to tackle violence against women and girls.