Essex Police plans to slash 110 support staff jobs, budget documents show.
Chief Constable Ben-Julian Harrington said government funding wasn’t enough to meet costs.
“No-one would deny the enormous financial pressures facing the force, but it’s also impossible to deny that cuts on this scale will affect policing across Essex.
“Support staff are the backbone of the police force. They free up officers’ time to concentrate on front-line policing and slashing their numbers will make it harder to keep the county safe.
“These proposals would see a serious reductions to the numbers of investigating officers and victim care teams.
“There’s never a good time to cut jobs, but it’s particularly galling that this announcement comes so soon after the end of the Police Uplift Programme’s rigid controls on spending.
“This provides a real opportunity to sit back and take stock of budgets. The chief constable has an opportunity to explore real opportunities to avoid these damaging cuts.”
Essex Police has made more than £90 million in cuts over the past decade. A further £9.4m have been identified for 2026/27.