New England Local Area Commander, Superintendent Bruce Lyons, has conceded that better access to the Tenterfield Police was essential.
Superintendent Lyons was invited to the recent Tenterfield Shire Council meeting following numerous complaints by local residents, who say their calls to the Tenterfield Police were often diverted to Armidale, and only some times did they get a response.
Superintendent Lyons said that although the Tenterfield Police have a high arrest rate, it is also just as important for local police officers to be relevant to their community.
“NSW Police has lost its way in this regard. We’ve lost our way in community policing,” he said.
“Some sort of customer service plan will be implemented in the Command for the better service of the community in Tenterfield.
“We as a police organisation need to deal with it better than what we’ve done before.
“The Mayor (Toby Smith) will hold me accountable of coming back with a way to stop things going through the cracks,” Superintendent Lyons said.
Cr Smith congratulated the superintendent on his report.
“It’s so refreshing to hear a report like this. This is the first time I’ve heard a superintendent say they will take an issue on,” he said.
A full gallery was present at the meeting.
Story: Rebecca Brown
