Villages call for more beat bobbies

Written by Published in From the Milton Keynes News on Wed 5th Sep 2007

Villagers are concerned about crime in their area following a series of thefts.

Police have urged the public to be vigilant after a number of incidents in which thieves stole lead from roof tops.

St Mary's church in Moulsoe was one of the buildings targeted but the issue has raised deeper concerns for villagers who feel that crime in the area is not being tackled.

Cllr Sam Potts, who lives in North Crawley, conducted a survey among villagers and some residents told him they are not receiving the support they need.

He said: "The villagers are getting a raw deal. Ouse Valley is not getting the support it needs. For this very small community to raise enough money to replace the damage that has been done is going to be extremely difficult.

"Thames Valley Police now need to respond and give more police on the beat in our Ouse Valley Villages."

A spokesman for the force said: "We continuously assess where we deploy our officers and how many resources we dedicate to each area.

"This assessment includes looking at the numbers and types of crimes occurring and the needs of communities, as well as our resilience to deal with incidents.

"We are currently in the process of recruiting PCSOs who will be responsible for dealing with low level crime and antisocial behaviour, as well as being highly visible."