...and the local police station has become a Lidl supermarket
A LIDL superstore stands on the site of the old police station in Harold Hill.
The police station was closed in 2011 as part of swingeing cuts to the Metropolitan Police budget.
The German supermarket chain snapped the site up for £1.6million and opened its new store last May. But residents of the post-war estate believe the disappearance of their police station coincided with the start of a rise in anti-social behaviour. Knife crime has become increasingly common.
Independent councillor Jan Sargent, 58, said she has been warning for years about the danger of underpolicing in the area. The nearest 24-hour police station is now three miles away in Romford.