It's the police station that comes to you

THE people of Clifton weren't exactly flocking to have a look around York's newest police station.

There were a few curious glances from passers-by walking along Crombie Avenue. But despite the invitingly-open door, nobody ventured inside. Round the corner at the Burton Stone Community Centre nobody even seemed to know it was there. "Mobile police station?" asked the man at the desk, clearly confused, when I asked for directions.

No one on Crombie Avenue itself could possibly miss it, however. The 7.5 tonne community vehicle, decked out in smart police colours, crouched in a layby outside Lady Mill Garth, its generator growling.

The Mobile Police Office, to give it its proper title, is York police's latest weapon in the fight against crime. Paid for with a £46,000 grant from the Home Office, it is designed to operate as a fully-equipped police station on wheels - one that can move from site to site across the city as and when needed.

The aim, said PC Paul Beckwith - one of two York officers qualified to drive it - is to bring policing back into the community as never before.

"It is about taking the police to the people," he said. "It is about giving people the opportunity to have a say in local policing, and about providing reassurance and gathering information and intelligence."

Judging by the reaction of locals, it may just work.

Neal and Susan Martyn, recently returned from holiday, appeared bemused at being invited to look around the new police HQ that had set up shop virtually on their doorstep.

But they became more enthusiastic once they were given a guided tour by Clifton beat officer PC Dave Heaven.

Inside, there is a blue-carpeted public reception area. It really is a bit like walking into the waiting room of a small police station. Shelves crammed with crime prevention leaflets - Be Safe, Be Sure and Steer Clear Of Car Crime - line the walls.

There are two whiteboards for providing information and giving briefings, and comfortably upholstered benches in one corner.

This is the area where the police hope members of the public will drop in to have a chat with their local beat bobbies - and with other community leaders who will also from time to time use the vehicle, such as neighbourhood watch co-ordinators, local councillors, and members of the Safer York Partnership, which obtained the Home Office funding to buy the van.

Next door is the business end of the vehicle. Go through a sliding door and you enter an office. There is an interview table and, once installation of all the equipment is complete, there will be a state-of-the-art police computer system, too.

It will have access to everything held on computer at York police station - intelligence files, incident files and criminal records - as well as internet access.

That, said PC Beckwith, will make it an effective, community-based forward command and control centre if, for example, police need a base on the ground when dealing with a major incident or investigation, such as a murder.

All that's missing are the cells - an essential part of any police station, you would have thought. Not this one, however.

"It is not a prison holding-vehicle," PC Heaven said sternly.

The Martyns admitted to being impressed.

"I think it is a good idea," Neal said. "It is very public, and hopefully it is the next step up from having police walking around in uniforms."

If there were an incident of some kind, Susan added, there would be somewhere for people to go. "And just having it here is a bit of a reassurance."

Other residents, once their initial surprise had been overcome, were equally enthusiastic.

"With everything that happens around here, I think it is a good idea for the police to be around like this," said Tracey Chappell, who was walking along Crombie Avenue. Bruce Lincoln, who lives on Crombie Avenue, agreed - but wished the van could still be around when children came out of school.

The main problem in the area was children and teenagers getting out of control, he said.

"Just the other day I had somebody run in here his home frightened of a gang of kids. So it is very good to have the police here. It makes me feel more comfortable."

But how exactly do the police plan to make use of their new mobile HQ in future?

Providing a presence on the ground when police are investigating a major crime will certainly be one use. It would provide an excellent base for taking statements and gathering information, said PC Heaven.

The van is also already booked to play a big part in York police's year-long vehicle crime initiative Operation COBRA, which is to be launched on April 4.

And it will be used at major events, such as York races or the Elvington airshow, where police need a visible presence.

But its main use will be to act as a mobile focal point in the community whenever beat officers hold local events or surgeries on their patch.

"It will make the police more accessible to the public, being used for shows, events or out and about and visible within the communities and outlying villages," said Insp Colin Moreton of York police, who is co-ordinating many of the mobile office's movements.

In the next couple of weeks the van will be doing the rounds of York, as police seek to raise its profile and give local people the chance to raise issues that concern them with their local police officers or council members.

After that, local bobbies will be able to book it so they can arrange 'meet your police' events and other activities.

PC Heaven is normally based in Clifford Street, from where he has to drive or cycle out to his patch.

He says it will make a refreshing change to have a more visible base occasionally. "We do need to be able to engage with the public more," he said.

And will it be put to use in the evenings, as well?

A police station on some of York's troubled estates or outlying towns and villages at night could make all the difference.

That option is being considered, says Insp Moreton.

The mobile station may well provide a perfect base for officers on foot in the evenings, he said. "If they were in pairs, one could stay in the vehicle and one could be out and about on patrol."

Just what the doctor ordered.

Updated: 09:08 Thursday, March 17, 2005