October 1, 2025
Parteek Singh Mahal
Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke highlighted the Justice Institute of British Columbia (JIBC) as a significant hurdle in the city’s efforts to increase its police force.
Speaking on RED FM’s Harjinder Thind Show, the mayor noted that the JIBC, which is the sole police training facility in the province, has limited capacity and cannot accommodate the high demand for new officers from Surrey and other municipalities. Locke believes that the province needs to make “serious changes” to its police training infrastructure to address this shortage.
Mayor Locke stated that she regularly communicates with the police chief regarding recruitment efforts. The Surrey Police Service (SPS) is actively hiring, and a recent announcement celebrated the addition of 19 new officers. The department is working to recruit both new recruits and experienced officers.
The total number of officers required for the city has not been fulfilled yet. According to official reports, the City of Surrey’s authorized policing strength is 785 officers.
Mayor Locke noted that the JIBC cannot accommodate the demand for new police officers from Surrey and other municipalities across British Columbia, including Vancouver, Abbotsford, Delta, and Victoria. She believes the province needs to make “serious changes” to police training to address this bottleneck.
However, the JIBC recently announced an expansion of its Police Academy recruit training program, increasing class sizes from 64 to 96 recruits per cohort starting in September 2025. This expansion is a provincial initiative to address police staffing shortages.
Mayor acknowledged the issue of the “cop per pop” ratio, or the number of police officers relative to the population. She pointed out that a previous council chose not to increase the number of police officers, which created a deficit that the current administration is working to correct. The city has been increasing officer numbers every year to “catch up” and plans to continue doing so.
Mayor Locke confirmed she has spoken to the chief of police about the need to address this deficit. She also plans to speak with the police board about recognizing and addressing these staffing challenges.
While the city’s authorized strength is currently 785 officers, this number is scheduled to increase by 25 officers annually to keep pace with population growth. The full transition to the Surrey Police Service and reaching full staffing is anticipated to be complete in late 2026.
Loading ...
