Officers returning to Ludlow Police Station

The announcement was made today by Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Bill Longmore, who said basing police in Leominster, 12 miles away, from 2013 had "not resulted in the best possible service" for people in the area, according to recent feedback.

The announcement has come after a spate of burglaries in and around Ludlow in recent months, and as deputy PCC Barrie Sheldon is set to talk to residents in the town tonight.

In 2013 Leominster was made the "patrol base" for both north Herefordshire and south Shropshire.

Ludlow police station has not shut, but is only used when officers are in town, and front counter services closed to the public last autumn.

Mr Longmore said today's announcement was the result of a review that he asked West Mercia Police Chief Constable David Shaw to make of the station arrangements and patrol zones.

He said: "From the word go I didn't think this was going to work for Ludlow. It's a very pretty town which gets a lot of visitors and the distance to Leominster was always going to prove a problem.

"The feedback I got from people locally was that the service wasn't as good as it could be.

"The Chief agreed to review the arrangements, and I'm very pleased that officers will now be based in the town again.

"This will undoubtedly help provide better policing and better results for people in Ludlow, and I'm very pleased that the force is making this change."

The Ludlow base will operate alongside the existing base in Leominster, meaning two deployment bases cover south Shropshire, north Herefordshire and the Tenbury region of Worcestershire; with the aim of improving the police response across the whole area.

The new model will take effect from the January 4. However, the number of officers dedicated to policing each area will not be changed, with established neighbourhood policing teams in Leominster, Kington and Bromyard, Bishops Castle, Ludlow, Cleobury Mortimer and Tenbury.

Amanda Blakeman, Assistant Chief Constable and head of local policing for Warwickshire Police and West Mercia Police, said: "This is an example of us listening to what our communities are telling us about the service we are providing.

"We are committed to ensuring that the policing in these areas meets the needs of all our communities where our three counties meet and we will be reopening the base at Ludlow in the new year as a result of our review."

Deputy PCC Barrie Sheldon will be at the Ludlow and Clee Area local joint committee meeting, along with Ludlow Inspector Robert Thomas, to speak to the people of the town at 7pm tonight, at the Elim Hall on Smithfield car park, Lower Galdeford.