Dr Alan Billings, South Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner, said: “Dinnington Police Station was closed to the public twenty years ago because it was little used by the public. It was sold in 2020, so cannot be ‘re-opened’ as Mr Stafford is requesting.

“The money from the sale of the building and the savings on running costs have contributed towards restoring police officer numbers which fell by 500 in South Yorkshire as a result of Conservative government cuts in grant year on year between 2010 and 2020. This period of austerity did untold damage to policing not just in South Yorkshire but across the country as numbers reduced by 20,000. It allowed criminal gangs to expand their drug markets out of urban and into rural areas.

“We are now in the process of restoring neighbourhood teams in Dinnington, Maltby and other parts of the Rotherham district, and bolstering police numbers in response teams.

“A new police station in Dinnington would cost a great deal of money to build and more to staff, equip, maintain and run.

“However, earlier this year I agreed with Dinnington Town Council that the neighbourhood team would use their offices on the High Street as a base where they can meet with members of the public and take crime reports. This arrangement is in place and is working well.

“Due to years of underfunding of the police service by the Conservative government and rising costs of inflation we do not have the funds to open, staff and maintain new premises. The only way to build and maintain a new police station would be through a substantial rise in council tax. With the current escalating rise in living costs and the struggles being faced by residents, I do not believe that is a fair burden to put on council tax-payers at this time.

“Mr Stafford keeps referring to £2 million of underspending in the budget. Each month I receive a report on how the budget is working out and what the projected underspend or overspend would be by the year end. These reports allow me and the force to adjust spending as the year progresses. This £2m was an estimated figure in one report and was in part the result of some additional one-off funding and in part to spending that was slipping from one year to the next.

“The local neighbourhood policing team are active within Dinnington and the dedicated police officer and PCSO are regularly out on patrol. They work closely with the public and with partner organisations to tackle crime and anti-social behaviour in the area. They are also supported by response officers and other specialist police services such as roads policing, dog handlers and armed police.

“If Mr Stafford would really like to help both the police and residents, I would invite him to join with me in making representations to his Government to give us next year a council tax freeze grant. This would enable me to balance the budget next year without having to call on council tax-payers for more money. This would both help hard-pressed residents and also be a genuine attempt to level up.”