Orana and Mudgee Local Area Commands will merge to form the Orana Mid-Western Police District as part of a restructure by the NSW Police.
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Police Commissioner Mick Fuller and Deputy Commissioner of Regional Field Operations Gary Worboys were in Mudgee on Thursday to announce the model.
Commissioner Fuller gave a guarantee the number of police within the new Orana Mid-Western district would increase under the new model but conceded some administration positions would be cut.
As part of several changes in NSW police commands, 34 current LACs will become 26 police districts.
Commissioner Fuller rejected suggestions the re-engineering was just about mergers.
“We have been talking about the future of country policing and that’s all about capability. The region enforcement squads, the domestic violence, high-risk offender teams, the capabilities we see in metropolitan Sydney is what we want in country NSW.
“This is an exciting change for country NSW after 20 years of Local Area Commands, which was very much a metropolitan model.”
Deputy Commissioner Worboys said the new model was a reflection of the requests he got while consulting within police and regional communities.
He said there was a need for an officer at each station who was in charge, overseen by a district commander.
The new Orana Mid-Western district, which also includes Warren and Coonamble, will be led by newly-appointed District Commander, Superintendent Peter McKenna.
All existing police stations will stay and have an officer-in-charge. For most there will also be a boost in officer numbers. Some administration positions will be cut.
Commissioner Fuller said exact numbers for the new district were still being determined but said there would be more police on the ground.
“There will be more police in the district than there was before the re-engineering started,” he said.
“That’s a guarantee there will be more police. Yes there will be losses of admin positions and that is unfortunate but under this model we won’t need as many admin positions in the area.
“We will settle numbers in the next couple of weeks so within 14 days you will have a much clearer picture in terms of growth in regional NSW.”