A reminder to call the police framed much of the Deloitte audit presentation delivered to council Monday night.
“People need to call us, we need to know what is going on,” Police Chief Kirk Earley told councillors.
“Because if we don’t know, then it doesn’t really count. Social media isn’t going to help. Call the police and tell us what you have. I was just at the BIA last week and I’m sure there are people out there who will say, ‘they’re not going to do anything, I don’t want to waste their time.’ Trust me, you’re not. And if you don’t get the results you like from the police officer, please let us know.”
In 2023, Deloitte LLP was commissioned by the Chatham-Kent Police Service to conduct a comprehensive organizational and operational review. The goal was to obtain an independent assessment of staffing levels, workload pressures, and service delivery capacity.
Earley said reviewing the results now has been “an interesting exercise” in seeing how much has changed over the past 24 months.
Deloitte’s audit confirmed CKPS was severely understaffed, with 142 officers per 100,000 people, compared to 174 in Ontario and 184 nationally. Since then, council has approved additional staffing and budget increases, changes Earley said are already making a noticeable difference. CKPS has been able to increase patrols in priority areas, including downtown Chatham.
“There has been an influx of people in the downtown core and they are causing issues,” Earley said.
“And we are now putting a significant amount of resources downtown. We have increased patrols downtown on foot and in vehicles. In fact, the way we work, we have 14 officers, we have 14 zones right now. As of January, we are going to make that 15 zones, and downtown will be a beat.”
Earley said having officers visible in the community carries real value.
“From an evidence-based policing perspective, that is probably the best way to prevent crime,” he said. “When you can be somewhere over a 10- or 15-minute period and be visible, that helps deter crime.”
Foot patrols, property checks and compliance checks are also up, he said, adding that increased staffing is only part of the improvement. He praised the addition of a wellness coordinator, who has played a key role in officer well-being and reducing burnout.
Earley said CKPS is heading in the right direction and will continue collaborating with local partners to secure the space and resources needed as the service expands.
