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New era of policing for Ilkley
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| NEW TEAM: Inspector Sue Sanderson and Sergeant Darren Minton |
THE RETURN of a dedicated inspector to Ilkley Police Station marks a new era of locally-based crime fighting in Wharfedale.
Inspector Sue Sanderson and Sergeant Darren Minton recently became the first senior officers to be stationed at Ilkley in several years.
With them comes an extra team of officers, taking the total number of police at the small town centre station to 25.
In addition to the now widely-recognised Police Comm-unity Support Officers (PCSOs) who patrol on foot in Ilkley and dedicated neighbourhood policing officers, is a team of regular police who respond to and tackle crime as it happens.
Thought of by critics as an outpost of Keighley Police Station, there were fears that the traditional small police station on Riddings Road might lose its public help desk or even close down altogether.
A new approach to policing across West Yorkshire, however, coupled with a shake-up of the divisions in the Bradford District, has seen the number of officers swell.
Ilkley Police Station is now the base for not only local patrols and community policing, but also reacting to and carrying out operations against crime.
As the leading officer at the station, Insp Sanderson plans to get to many community events, neighbourhood forums and local council meetings, so a wider section of the community becomes familiar with its local officers and can talk to them informally about any concerns or issues.
Insp Sanderson, 41, has lived in Burley-in-Wharfedale for 12 years and already knows the area well, although she previously worked in Leeds and later Bradford.
She believes the closer contact with community will also help alleviate an unfounded fear of crime in the Ilkley area.
"We're in an area where there is very little crime but the fear of crime is a problem," she said.
The new look of policing in West Yorkshire means the old beat' system has been replaced by policing based around council wards, says Insp Sanderson.
"We've gone away from the beat system. The chief constable wanted every three ward areas to have a dedicated Neighbourhood Policing Team led by an inspector.
"I'm the inspector for Ilkley, Craven and Wharfedale wards. Each ward has police officers dedicated to it and a number of PCSOs," she said.
And while dealing with and investigating certain types of crime was once passed to other departments outside of the area, the new reactive' team at Ilkley Police Station will directly tackle crime in its own area.
Although the public help desk at Ilkley Police Station is open for standard nine to five office hours from Monday to Friday, the reactive police officers work around the clock all week from the station. NPT officers also work until 1am most mornings and 3am on weekends.
The changes at the police station have included the addition of the area's eighth PCSO. Although they do not have the same powers as regular officers, PCSOs provide a uniformed presence patrolling the streets of Ilkley, Addingham, Burley-in-Wharfedale, Menston and Silsden.
Police say this not only reassures members of the public, but because residents have become familiar with their local PCSOs, they have the confidence now to chat to the officers and often pass on information about crime.
Insp Sanderson said: "PCSOs are invaluable from the point of view of visibility and people feeling secure there is someone patrolling. They also provide us with vital information."
The PCSOs patrol on foot or bicycle, and travel between the villages by public transport.
6:10pm Wednesday 7th May 2008
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