A Nantwich councillor told a police inspector that illegal drug activity in the town is “getting worse”.
Cllr Stuart Bostock said there were obvious areas where people gathered to deal or buy drugs around Nantwich.
He made the comments as councillors quizzed Insp Andy Smith at a Nantwich Town Council meeting at the Civic Hall last night about the closure of the police station helpdesk on Beam Street.
Cllr Bostock said: “There a lot of vulnerable people who are worried to death as they don’t know how to contact the police.
“It’s very rare to see a policeman walking around certain areas of the town where there is drug taking going on.
“It’s getting worse and I’ve even seen people on motorbikes and in cars after dark blowing their horns and raising their fingers as they drive past the police station.
“Nothing is being done about it and I don’t feel it’s good enough.”
The police helpdesk in Nantwich closed in September as part of a “rationalisation” plan by the force.
Cllr David Marren remarked that there were often officers inside the station.
He said: “People now have to use the phone outside the station, and I know there have been complaints about getting through on the phone. I tried it and gave up after 20 minutes.”
Insp Smith various police teams may use the station including admin teams, response teams and rural teams who use it as a base for “comfort breaks”.
He also confirmed that the Nantwich police team was currently short of two officers and that they were being recruited to start soon.
He added: “Nantwich is not immune to having a drug problem.
“It’s no where as bad as other places but we be naive to think it does not drug issues, from both a social point of a view and a criminality one.
“With the right kind of information and support from the community there’s a lot we can do.
“We only have two officers in the town at the moment when we should have four.”
Cllr Marren also asked the inspector if the police could provide a cost for re-instating the Nantwich helpdesk.
you go online and there is a very complicated form that is difficult for some to fill in, I suggest they go back to the drawing board on that one as it is not user friendly when you try to give info on crime