The Leeds Off-Road Bike Team (ORBT) has not been disbanded. West Yorkshire Police says no final decision has been made on the future of the specialist unit, which has a presence in Wakefield and is at the centre of a wider discussion about how specialist policing teams should be organised.

The issue moved into the public spotlight after the “Save the Leeds Off-Road Bike Team” petition passed 800 signatures and spread widely across social media. Its claim is that the ORBT will be dismantled and its officers transferred to generic neighbourhood policing teams. The petition was created anonymously by a user operating under the name Concerned Biker.

Assistant Chief Constable Damien Miller said operational changes may be needed to meet Government funding requirements while strengthening neighbourhood policing. One option under consideration is moving standalone teams into neighbourhood structures. At the same time, West Yorkshire Police says the work carried out by those functions will continue, including action on issues raised by local communities, protecting the public and bringing offenders to justice. The immediate question is therefore how the ORBT’s work would be organised, rather than whether a final decision to abolish the team has already been taken.