CAMBRIDGESHIRE Chief Constable Julie Spence’s final weeks in the job have been spent in a 24-hour a day mission to balance the police service’s books in the face of large budget cuts, she revealed this week.

In a final podcast before she stepped down, she said: “Six months ago, when I handed in my notice, there seemed to be all the time in the world to accomplish so much before this week arrived.

“But quite apart from the day-to-day business of running a large organisation, attending national and regional meetings, going to conferences and getting out and about in the county, almost out of the blue came the need for unexpectedly large cuts in budgets.

“What should have been a time for taking stock, assessing the changes and improvements made in the past five years and helping to steer colleagues in the right direction, has instead become an urgent 24-hour a day mission to balance the books without damaging output, making economies with the least possible impact on the public and our workforce.”

Looking back over her tenure as Chief Constable, Mrs Spence said: “To turn a failing force into a successful one, we had to use the skills of the officers and police staff already in place.

“The progress the force has made has been a team effort. Others who work with me, from my ACPO colleagues to the newest PCSO and from fingerprint specialists to technology experts are the ones who put the plans into action.

“As I say goodbye I thank them for their efforts. I thank the police authority which has supported me, even when it may have had doubts, and I thank the partner agencies and other organisations.

“More than ever in the coming years, YOUR force will face tougher and leaner times and will be forced into making hard choices demanding even greater understanding and co-operation.”