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Last updated Monday August 25, 2008

Police on our Streets

PC Chris Barwell Eccleshall, based at Eccleshall 

previously taught officers nation wide on how to handle Terrorist Attacks. 

Campaign

Letter in Staffordshire Newsletter 01/06/06 (Click to enlarge)

Eccleshall used to have a Police Station, with its own Edwardian magistrates court and cells, which still survive today.  In 1998 the building was sold and became a bed and breakfast, Peel House.

The building had originally been built for a wealthy lawyer in the 1850’s.  The in 1911 the Council purchased the building for use as a police station and billet a fact that reflects the town’s former role as a centre of justice.

Eccleshall magistrates court was always known for its no-nonsense attitude to those found guilty.  One lawyer from London , who at the time was travelling to see a client in the north of the country, happened to be caught speeding in the Eccleshall district.  Allegedly he informed the arresting officers that if they drove his car outside the Eccleshall limit he would admit to driving any speed they wished to agree to.

Further information on the town of Eccleshall can be found on: www.eccleshalltowndesign.org

Now however like many areas in the country, particularly rural locations, although there are continuously large increases in the Police’s section of council tax the perception of Police presence has fallen dramatically.  Ivan and a committee of local residents and businessmen have got together to try and reverse this trend.

16th March 2006 - Chief Inspector Karl Bohanan, Staffordshire Police Force, provided Cllr Ivan Jennings with information on expenditure and Police staffing numbers in Eccleshall since the new Police Station was constructed (some of which is listed below).  The same day yet another Stafford resident wrote the following article in the Letters to the Editor section of the Staffordshire Newsletter....

(click to enlarge)

This follows residents of Stafford writing in over concerns that even areas of Stafford town are becoming no go areas!

Visible policing in Eccleshall currently consists of one community officer, dealing mainly with traffic offences i.e. parking.  There is also a rota of 4 Police Constables who sign in at Eccleshall Police Station but other than the three squad cars, parked there continuously, all the Police station seems to be is a clocking in and out station.  Value for money?

Facts provided by Staffordshire Police Force:-

Official/recorded crime figures since 1999

Daily Express 06th April 2006

(Click on the Headline to see the Mail Article from 06/04/06)

Current Eccleshall Police Numbers

Ivan with Diane Eccleshall's Community Support Officer

Nationally The Police Force is even acknowledging they are so undermanned they don't bother with minor crimes!

Click here for articles

But don't fear the resources they have are being used wisely...

Home Office Intervene

The Home Office are proposing the merger of Staffordshire Police force with the West Midlands Police Force, West Mercia Police Force and Warwickshire Police Force, which will come into effect on 1st April 2007.  On 17th April 2006 I received their report.  There are some strong arguments for this new structure in contrast to how the area is policed currently.  I do however have doubts about the service level we would receive under this new structure as not only one of the areas currently under manned when we are looking at a force only having to prioritise for the Staffordshire area.  We also have to look at what is happening more generally.  If using a regional structure for our services such as the police force and (the one that I totally oppose) the Ambulance Services, if it were to go ahead, it would make sense for all the services to be working from the same structure type.  Also the NCS (National Crime Squad) and RCS (Regional Crime Squad), both of whom I worked with to a very limited degree whilst in the CPS, has recently been replaced by SOCA, which also encompassed other agencies.  Some of the targets that are stated to be reasons for the amalgamation of the four current police forces are in my opinion the reasoning behind the current RCS (Regional Crime Squad) and so actually add little strength to the overall reasoning.  I have included here a copy of some of the report.   They are large blocks of information and so may take some time to download, please click on this sentence to see them.

The balance of the debate

The cost to protect the family and workers of the legal and legitimate Guinea Pig Farm in Staffordshire from left wing protesters, who's "protest" included intimidation, vandalism, crank calls etc and culminated in the theft of a grandmothers body from a grave, cost Staffordshire Police Authority in excess of £2.25 million.  (This, it should be pointed out, is not a criticism of the Police in anyway but simply goes to show that large sums have to be used to combat such criminals).  The same problems Eccleshall and the surrounding area are facing are also seen in Gnosall and throughout the Borough Councils Area.  Click here to see story from The Newsletter 20/04/06

S.O.C.A