A long-standing Nantwich councillor has called on Cheshire Police to re-open the town’s police station helpdesk as the local population continues to rise.
Cllr Arthur Moran has tabled a “notice of motion” which will be discussed by Nantwich Town Council at their monthly meeting this week (July 13).
He said that the Government’s recent pledge of more investment in policing should be used to open up those stations that were closed recently.
If councillors support the notice, Cllr Moran will write to the Cheshire Police Crime Commissioner John Dwyer to call for the Beam Street station to be re-opened.
The station remains operational with officers based there, but is closed to members of the public.
He said: “With the ever-increasing population of Nantwich due to housing development in Nantwich west and Stapeley, it is essential that Nantwich police station is open to the public.
“The Government has recently stated that they have invested and increased the number of police officers on the beat.
“This investment should now continue to keep or reopen stations like Nantwich to confirm this stated improvement.
“With a town the size of Nantwich the front desk should be open for residents to report incidents.
“It’s all so very frustrating for residents to see police cars in the yard of the station but not be to contact them.”
It was announced by the force last summer that Nantwich police station’s front desk would close so residents could no longer report incidents by walking in.
They said the changes were made after a six-week consultation, which left just five stations across the county with helpdesks.
Smaller stations like Nantwich, Winsford and Congleton were left with just a “contact point telephone” on the side of the station to use.
The force says the changes come after a six-week consultation on change to how it uses its resources, and was backed by Commissioner Mr Dwyer.
He said at the time: “These changes to helpdesks will allow us to invest even more in our force control room and phone operators.
“I know from my 30-year career as a police officer about the value of face-to-face contact.
“In that time, I also saw a huge change in how people wanted to interact with their police service.
“Ensuring weekly PCSO surgeries will enable us to maintain valuable face to face contact while also improving all the other ways in which people contact the police.”
Cllr Moran’s “Notice of Motion” has been seconded by Cllr Peter Groves and will be discussed at the meeting on Thursday, which starts at 6.30pm in Nantwich Civic Hall.
Considering the emboldening of the younger delinquent element that the closing of the police station led to, I’d say it is a very good idea indeed to reopen it, and rengage those community links it was known for previously whilst acting as a visible and present deterrent for future antisocial behaviour in the town centre.