Do not extinguish the blue lamp as a beacon for the beleaguered
I AM a keen supporter of the police and, for personal reasons, the Chief Constable Sir Steven House. Nevertheless, as the granddaughter of William Fraser, a former Chief Constable who was twice decorated by a British monarch (King’s Police Medal and MBE for services to the intelligence community during the Second World War), I am deeply disappointed at the latest local development in Police Scotland: the proposed closure or reduction in hours of one-third of our precious local police stations (“Chief Constable defends plan to shut police offices to public”, The Herald, October 3). I reside in West Dunbartonshire, an area blighted by poverty and near the bottom of most leagues recording social deprivation.
As a former school teacher in Renton, I need no reminder of the effects of poor policing when the heroin epidemic hit the community in the 1980s and the subsequent violence and desperation that arrived with it.
I stay in Dumbarton, purposely near to our local station. I read that Alexandria police station is likely to shut completely after more than 100 years and Dumbarton police office, the divisional headquarters for West Dunbartonshire and Argyll, will only open between 9am and 5pm, thus excluding anyone working normal office hours from access to their local stations. I have not missed the irony of this at a time when GP surgeries are being asked to remain open until 8pm to allow the working contributors to our big system to access their services. Let’s make no mistake; once these offices close they will not reopen.
Recently my grandson was the victim of crime and attended, along with his mother, the local office at Dumbarton to report the matter in person. The office was closed. This must have been during the trial period that the Divisional Commander, Barry McEwan, was testing on reduced hours and “found that we continue to serve the public well with no adverse impact”. Clearly he had not spoken to my daughter-inlaw. As far as I am aware there has been no community consultation with residents as to what their thoughts as service users were on the proposed closures and I would be interested to see the extent of the trial evidence published for local examination.
I am a retired person with some deterioration of my hearing. I have alluded to the fact that I stay near our local office; this always allowed me a degree of comfort knowing the police were nearby. In the years that my late husband battled dementia and would occasionally leave the family home unattended I found being able to attend the office at any time to seek assistance an incredible help. The officers were always so attentive. I do not have a computer and due to hearing difficulties and the advancement of age I am not comfortable with using the telephone to report matters. I cannot access the police web address, nor would I know how to, nor could I report via the new 101 number or textlink, I think in an emergency I could use 999. How now can I contact the police? Today I feel isolated from Police Scotland and wonder what my grandfather would have made of the proposals.
I would ask that our local police management team who work very hard on our behalf reconsider their position on closing Alexandria Police Station and reducing Dumbarton Police Station’s hours. I value our local police officers and our stations. There are vulnerable people in the community who need them and I would ask that this is reflected upon. I also would very much welcome a response outlining how I should contact the police after 5pm in Dumbarton, given my difficulties. A police station in my mind is a beacon of hope and much more than being a cost figure at the bottom line of an accountant’s ledger. Closure sends a very negative message to an ailing community. I hope the blue light is not about to be extinguished in my part of West Dunbartonshire. Anne Duncan, High Overtoun, Dumbarton. AS most of my experienced police colleagues already know, the more officers you have sitting in police stations the fewer you have preventing crime patrolling the streets. It makes sense to close all stations staffed by one or two policemen. By relocating these officers to street duties/patrol they could be where they are needed much quicker to deal with matters of concern. Donald J Morrison, 20 Haig Street, Portknockie, Buckie.