Colchester: More than 80 people join local officers on patrol

More than 80 people joined officers on patrol in Colchester as part of the community policing team's ‘stroll with a patrol’ initiative designed to address community concerns.

Stroll with a patrol is a local initiative aimed at encouraging local business owners, workers, and residents to take a walk with their local police officers in the area where they live or work.

Those who attended were encouraged to speak up about the things that cause them concern in their community, including where they didn’t feel safe.

It also provided an opportunity for the local community to get to know the officers who are working hard to look after them and keep them safe.

Over the space of a few months, Colchester’s Community Policing team held more than 40 ‘stroll with a patrol’ events across the district and spoke with more than 300 local people as part of these patrols.

As well as members of the public, the officers invited local partners to join them too, and representatives from Essex County Fire and Rescue Service, Colchester Borough Council, the NHS and local housing associations were some of those who went along.

Their involvement meant if a concern raised wasn't a policing matter, such as street lighting or littering, we were able to offer the opportunity to speak to the people or organisation who were able to help or talk about what they were doing to improve things in the area.

Simon, a local resident, who attended one of the patrols in Castle Park, said:

“What an excellent opportunity this was to go out with not only Essex Police, led by PC Mullins, but also seeing in action the Park Rangers and Street Wardens.
“We walked to the Skate Park, all around Castle Park and the Dutch Quarter.
“It was great, and I urge anybody in Colchester to go out on a patrol with Essex Police.”

Colchester’s Community Policing Team Inspector, Stuart Austin said:

“I’d like to thank everyone who took the opportunity to join us out on patrol.
“This enabled us to find out more about the things our community feel are issues and address these.
“It gave us an opportunity to talk to local people and tell them about what we’re doing to keep them safe.
“As part of our Community Safety Partnership, we have a responsibility to deliver visible policing in our community and this is something we will continue to do.
“We hope to run stroll with a patrol again next year, so please keep a lookout for this on our Facebook and Twitter pages, as well as our weekly e-newsletter, Dispatch – Colchester Edition.”