LESS than a third of people in Herefordshire see a police officer once a week, a new survey has revealed.

It also showed, however, that Herefordshire residents have confidence in West Mercia Police, and that it understand issues in the community.

As part of Police and Crime Commissioner John Campion's commitment to listening and acting on the concerns raised by the communities in Herefordshire, a survey is carried out to help inform him about which elements of the force are doing well and where there are areas for improvement.

Thousands of people across West Mercia were interviewed over a 12-month period which highlighted the following results for Herefordshire:

  • 87 per cent tended to agree or strongly agreed they have confidence with West Mercia Police – up two per cent on last quarter
  • 74 per cent tended to agree or strongly agreed that West Mercia Police understands issues in their community – up two per cent on last quarter
  • 84 per cent said crime and anti-social behaviour was not much of a problem or not a problem at all – up two per cent on last quarter
  • 31 per cent said they see an officer or police community support officer at least once per week – down three per cent on last quarter
  • 90 per cent said that crime and anti-social behaviour in their area had not increased – up one per cent on last quarter

Police and Crime Commissioner John Campion said: "I promised to put the public at the heart of policing in Herefordshire.

"This survey gives me insight into how satisfied and confident Herefordshire residents are in their local police service.

"The results are used to help me shape my investments in policing and effectively hold the Chief Constable to account where the service can improve.

"It's encouraging to see that residents in the county have a good level confidence in their police force and that the force understands the issues that are important to them.

"But I am committed that we can do even better, and I remain committed to improving issues such as police officer visibility and accessibility all whilst maintaining a relentless focus on fighting crime.

"I will continue to use the data from this survey to make the necessary improvements across Herefordshire, and to ensure West Mercia has the right resources in place to tackle the issues important to our communities."