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  "description": "Plus: Harborough District Council byelection date announced",
  "path": "/2m-reform-private-policing-scheme-under-scrutiny/",
  "publishedAt": "2026-06-15T03:00:21.000Z",
  "site": "https://www.leicester.news",
  "tags": [
    "Andy Spence",
    "Click here to sign up",
    "Met Office",
    "Councillor slams Reform UK’s private police as a new shoplifting solution emerges",
    "Byelection date announced following death of councillor",
    "Taxpayers pick up the bill for new mayor dinner costing over £6,000",
    "Council urged to rethink ‘unfair’ SEND proposals",
    "City mayor says stalled railway project could be back on track",
    "Community unites to support family with essentials after lightning hit their home",
    "Book your place",
    "Leicester Jazz House Presents: Bryan Corbett Quartet",
    "Tim Peake Day",
    "Summer in the Square",
    "Steve Knight",
    "Become a member"
  ],
  "textContent": "Dear readers – the police and crime commissioner is facing fresh scrutiny over plans to roll out £2m private security wardens to towns across Leicestershire. Melton Borough councillor Sharon Butcher has called out the scheme, saying that the £2m could have been better spent on tackling the root causes of crime. Previously, policing boss Andy Spence labelled the private warden scheme as a ‘bad idea’.\n\nIn other news, a byelection has been called following the death of a councillor on Harborough District Council. The council has confirmed that the byelection will take place on Thursday 2 July.\n\n_Reading this on the website and not yet subscribed to the newsletter?_ Click here to sign up_._\n\n* * *\n\n## This week's weather\n\n**Monday** ⛅**** Sunny intervals changing to cloudy by late morning. 23C\n\n**Tuesday** ⛅**** Sunny intervals changing to cloudy in the afternoon. 24C\n\n**Wednesday** ⛅**** Overcast changing to sunny intervals by lunchtime. 23C\n\n**Thursday** ⛅**** Sunny intervals. 25C\n\n**Friday** ⛅**** Cloudy changing to sunny intervals in the afternoon. 24C\n\n**Weekend** ⛅**** Sunny intervals changing to cloudy by late morning. 24C\n\n _We get our weekly weather forecast from the_ Met Office_._\n\n* * *\n\n## Your weekly briefing\n\n### Councillor slams Reform UK’s private police as a new shoplifting solution emerges\n\nCouncillor and former landlady Sharon Butcher has called out a new £2m Reform scheme.\n\n### Byelection date announced following death of councillor\n\nHarborough District Council has confirmed that the byelection will take place on 2 July.\n\n### Taxpayers pick up the bill for new mayor dinner costing over £6,000\n\nOfficials spent more than £6,000 of taxpayer’s cash on a “grand evening” celebrating the appointment of a new Leicestershire mayor.\n\n### Council urged to rethink ‘unfair’ SEND proposals\n\nReform bosses are being urged to rethink proposals for Leicestershire’s Early Years Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) service.\n\n### City mayor says stalled railway project could be back on track\n\nThe multi-million-pound revamp was originally expected to be completed in 2024.\n\n### Community unites to support family with essentials after lightning hit their home\n\nFundraisers launch in Melton Mowbray to help families with essentials following lightning strike.\n\n* * *\n\n## Photo of the week\n\nThe Athena and Queen's Building in St Georges Quarter. Photograph: Joseph Herbert\n\nWant to be featured in our photo of the week section? Share your photos with us at joseph@leicester.news, and we'll include the best in our next newsletter!\n\n* * *\n\n## Things to look forward to\n\n****FOIA Workshop****\n\nJoin us for our first public Freedom of Information Workshop, a live, hour-long interactive session where Rhys and Emma will teach you how to put in your own public records requests. The event will be held on Thursday, 18 June at 6:30pm at Quaker Meeting House, 16 Queens Road, Leicester.\n\n\n                            Book your place\n                        \n\n### Leicester Jazz House Presents: Bryan Corbett Quartet\n\nBryan is a local musician with an International reputation. He has toured and performed around the globe as a guest artist, and with his own bands regularly performs festivals, concert halls and clubs throughout the UK. 8pm on 17 June at the International on Garden Street. Tickets are from £16.\n\n### Tim Peake Day\n\nCelebrate ten years since Tim Peake’s Principia mission return with a unique day featuring talks, book signing opportunities and insights into his life and work since landing. National Space Centre, 18 June at 10am. Tickets from £10.\n\n### Summer in the Square\n\nSummer on the Square is taking over Jubilee Square for the duration of the World Cup from 11 June to 19 July. This will be Leicester’s first large-scale outdoor screen and dedicated pop-up beer garden. No tickets required, it's first come first served.\n\n* * *\n\n## A window to the past\n\nRock band 'Rush' playing life at De Montfort Hall in June 1980. Photograph: Steve Knight\n\n* * *\n\n## Become a member to support our events\n\nThis week we're running our first ever public Freedom of Information workshop. This will be a live, hour-long interactive session where Rhys and Emma will teach you how to pry records from councils, politicians and government departments through public records requests.\n\nWe hope to put on more events like this in the future, but can only that with the generous support of our members. Becoming a member costs as little as £2 a month – less than a cup of coffee.\n\nBecome a member",
  "title": "£2m Reform private policing scheme under scrutiny",
  "updatedAt": "2026-06-15T05:00:23.672Z"
}