REGINA — Regina police is the latest municipal police service to get a boost to its number of frontline officers, thanks to provincial funding.
RPS is receiving $1.7 million from the province’s Safer Communities and Neighbourhoods (SCAN) initiative to assist with recruiting and retaining 27 officers.
This follows similar announcements last week for police forces in Weyburn, Estevan, Moose Jaw and Prince Albert. In total, the province says SCAN is providing $6 million to municipal police forces to hire 100 additional officers, with the funding described as an ongoing commitment.
At the funding announcement at Regina police headquarters on Monday, Minister of Community Safety Michael Weger said the investment reflects the province’s role in supporting public safety.
“Our government is recognizing that yes, policing is the responsibility of the municipality, but we can help out,” said Weger. “If we want, in Regina in particular, to be a place where people want to move to, raise their families and start a business, we need to know that it needs to be safe. And that's good for the city of Regina, and that's good for the province of Saskatchewan.”
Regina Police Chief Lorilee Davies welcomed the funding, noting it comes at a time of financial pressure and fiscal restraint at Regina city hall.
“We know that our city is currently in a challenging financial position, so the provincial investment of $1.7 million in staffing is very welcome. We would otherwise have been unable to add new officers to our service at this time,” said Davies.
As for how many of the 27 officers have been hired so far, Davies said 10 officers are currently in training at the Saskatchewan Police College, and three experienced members have been hired since the start of the year. She added RPS is looking to hire at least 10 more recruits for the July training class, with plans to have all remaining positions in training by the end of the year.
The priority, Davies said, is to increase police presence on the frontlines and in visible community roles. Mayor Chad Bachynski said that is a common concern raised by residents.
“One of the biggest things I hear is people want more visibility of police in our community,” said Bachynski. “When there's even an officer taking a moment to finish up paperwork around the corner, that's a corner that has visibility. People feel safer knowing that there's somebody there in case something were to happen. So having money that directly goes to hiring officers is a big step in the right direction.”
Davies noted that results from the 2025 Community Perceptions Survey showed respondents identified improving police visibility as a top priority.
“We’ve been very fortunate in working with the city over the past number of years to grow our frontline,” said Davies. “But there is always a need. Crime is complex, more complex than ever. We are responding to more calls than we ever have, and we need to increase resourcing to respond effectively.”
In addition to increased visibility, Davies said the added officers are expected to help improve response times, particularly for 911 calls.
“We have expectations from the community that we're able to get to those emergencies in a timely manner, and we need to be adequately staffed to be able to do that.”
