The Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) is set to vote on a new £5.1 million “Safety and Resilience” revenue budget for 2026/27 that would direct additional police and fire support to Bolton. Regional leaders will meet on 13 February 2026 to vote on the funding, which is intended to tackle anti-social behaviour and help reduce emergency response times.
If approved, the proposal says the money will be used to bolster the Safer Streets programme, increase the visibility of neighbourhood police officers in town-centre hotspots and surrounding residential areas (including Breightmet and Farnworth), and fund community-led crime-prevention projects. Local partners such as Bolton CVS and Bolton’s Fund are named in briefings as potential administrators for small grants to community groups.
The authority’s proposal comes after the introduction of the UK government’s Integrated Settlement, which gives mayoral combined authorities such as the GMCA greater flexibility over how devolved funding is spent. The £5.1m is earmarked for community safety, policing visibility and local prevention grants; it is not the funding vehicle for maintaining the region’s fleet of fire engines. (Separately, the wider mayoral budget and recent precept changes have been described by the mayor as supporting the maintenance of 52 fire engines.)
If leaders approve the plan at the 13 February meeting, the revenue funding would be allocated for the 2026/27 financial year beginning 1 April 2026, allowing the new safety measures and community grants to start being rolled out from the new fiscal year.
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