SINCE Cheshire’s police and crime commissioner was appointed last November he’s been busy building up his entourage.

Conservative John Dwyer, voted in after a dismal turnout of 13.7 per cent of the electorate, is there to control the police budget.

But did you know that Mr Dwyer and PCCs all over the country are quietly employing a whole team of people?

From the old police authority days they had to keep on a chief executive and a chief finance officer but other jobs are being funded from public money which also pays for frontline policing.

Trying to find out exactly who those team members are and what they are paid is not easy.

His PR person’s starting point is to tell you that the public don’t need to worry their little heads about it all.

In February the list of the PCC’s staff – ‘Your-PCC/The Team’ was listed on Mr Dwyer’s website. Then it was taken down.

Perhaps it had something to do with one of my reporters making enquiries about those jobs?

The PR person told us: “We’ve had a tidy up on the website to make it easier to navigate”. Or to stop nosey reporters asking questions?

But those questions have at least proved fruitful as this week you can now read a who’s who of the PCC’s staff.

Mr Dwyer, who earns £75,000, has appointed former police authority chairman Margaret Ollerenshaw as his deputy commissioner. They have 12 staff to support them.

As well as the chief executive and chief financial officer, Mr Dwyer has recently appointed a deputy chief executive whose salary can be up to £50,000 and now has a total staff wage bill of almost £700,000. Austere times indeed.

Anna Collins, communication and consultation officer, was asked by my reporter in February when they were advertising the role of deputy chief executive:“This is not a role we wish to publicise as the public need to understand the role of the commissioner not his office,” she told him.

“The role is being advertised internally to the constabulary to give all staff who may be at risk the opportunity to be re-deployed.” 

Thanks to my reporter you can now read about those staff yourself: www.cheshire-pcc.gov.uk/Your-PCC/Your-OPCC.aspx