by political editor Paul Francis

Kent Police will reveal today how many officers face the axe as it looks to make £50m worth of government-ordered cuts.

Wide-ranging job cuts are expected to be announced when the force's governing body meets later.

Kent Police Authority will take the first step towards agreeing a major re-organisation to cope with the cuts over the next four years.

An estimated 1,500 jobs are likely to be at risk as the force faces up to a spending squeeze.

It has been described as "unprecedented" and "the greatest financial challenge in a generation".

Members of the authority are to be briefed in private at a meeting by chief constable Ian Learmonth on how Kent Police intends to manage the impact on its budget.

The extent of the cuts is expected to be signficant, with an estimated 1,500 jobs in the firing line over the four-year period as Kent Police wrestles with a sharply reduced grant.

Between now and 2015, grants are to be pared back by about a fifth with an estimated £25.3m of savings needed in Kent over the next two years.

In a paper setting out the police authority’s £287m budget for 2011-12, finance chiefs say: "It needs to be recognised that the scale of the savings challenge over the next three years is unprecedented and can only be achieved through fundamental changes to the Kent Policing model."

However, the report says that while the government’s grant settlement is not good news, it is "no worse than anticipated".

The bulk of any job losses are expected to be among the force’s civilian staff although it is likely front-line officers will also be affected.

In a message to staff last year about the financial outlook, Mr Learmonth said: "All areas of the force’s business and budget are being examined.

"Clearly this is a very sensitive area for everyone and we must never lose sight of the fact we are dealing with peoples’ jobs and people’s lives.

"We have to be honest with everyone about the challenge that faces us and we will be."

Kent Police employs 3,728 officers and 2,932 civilian staff.

There is some good news for council taxpayers in the budget as there will be a freeze on the charge made to residents for policing.

That means average police bills for those in Band D homes will stay at £138.