“Are there things about policing that you’ve never quite understood and have always wondered about?” asks Telford & Wrekin’s Police Commander, Chief Superintendent James Tozer.

This is the first in a series of blogs, written by me and other serving West Mercia Police officers and staff based in Telford, in which we hope to give you the chance to learn more about policing, some of the issues we deal with locally and also an insight into the way the police work and how different crimes are investigated.

It is my job, as Divisional Commander for the Telford & Wrekin Division of West Mercia Police, to organise, direct and prioritise my staff and the resources available to me to give the people of the borough the best service possible and address the issues and crimes that cause local people the most concern.

I have been a serving police officer for over 18 years now and have held a wide variety of roles across West Mercia. Although I have worked in other areas I always seem to come back to Telford and I believe I am unique in having served in Telford at every rank possible on division – from joining as a probationer and becoming a police constable, right through to my current role as divisional commander.

I feel this provides me with a real knowledge of the area and some of the issues that really matter to the people who live here.

Policing is often in the news – be it on television, radio, in the papers or on the internet – in one form or another but it’s not always reported accurately. I can assure you though that not everything that happens is like an episode of The Bill.

My personal view is that policing is a privilege and it is my great honour to be able to lead G Division here in Telford. It’s worth remembering that police and Community Support Officers are ordinary people with families of their own who, away from work, are also part of the community just like everybody else. For example, I am a father myself so my concerns as a parent are bound to be similar to those felt by many other people.

Police officers will often be asked to deal with incidents where emotions and tempers are running high, and although I know we sometimes make mistakes, these are far outweighed by the hundreds of things every day that we do well – and I firmly believe as well as anyone in the world. It would be almost impossible for us to meet the needs of everyone successfully every single time but I am proud of the efforts of my staff and know they do all they can to provide the best service possible.

Despite the amazing complexity of policing sometimes, in my view it is still very simple at its heart. In a nutshell we are here to catch criminals, prevent crime and help keep order and it’s pleasing to report that Telford is a relatively low crime area compared to other new towns.

There is no doubt we do have our fair share of crime and anti-social behaviour (ASB) issues locally but we do our utmost to work with other local service organisations and the public – witnesses and victims alike – to try to find solutions to the difficult issues that arise. I know how much anti-social behaviour concerns people and we have now set up a groundbreaking ASB Unit in conjunction with Telford & Wrekin Council to tackle any issues that are having a negative impact on the lives of local residents.

I hope you have seen from recent press reports that we are also increasing our focus on preventing and investigating burglaries. Make no mistake: if you commit a burglary our specialist team of detectives will catch you. Likewise, another of our priority areas is serious and domestic violence and if you are involved in this sort of crime the team dedicated to this type of investigation will track you down too.

So how can you get involved I hear you ask? Well, in any one of a number of ways is the simple answer and we will be focusing on some of these in this blog over the coming weeks.

Perhaps the most straightforward way though is simply by talking to us and reporting your concerns. This can be done through your Local Policing Team via the PACT (Partners and Communities Together) process or simply by calling us on 0300 333 3000. And don’t forget you always have the option of ringing Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 if you have something you want to say without getting directly involved yourself.

Please remember that without your help it is far more difficult for us to do our job – to bring safety and confidence to us all as members of the local community. Thank you all for all the help you are already giving us and please do not believe those people who state that we do not want to hear from you. I assure you that every single call we receive is taken seriously and that we will try to help you if we possibly can.

Chief Superintendent James Tozer