Laptop computers keep south Shropshire police on beat
Police officers in south Shropshire are to be issued with laptop computers to cut down on paperwork and reduce the amount of time spent behind desks.
It comes after it was revealed frontline 999 response officers were being moved from Ludlow, Craven Arms and Church Stretton police stations to Leominster or Shrewsbury in
September, sparking fears of longer response times to potentially life-threatening calls.
Inspector Rob Thomas, section commander for the south of the county for West Mercia Police, said it was about moving resources to the areas of greatest demand. He also revealed "beat bobbie" police officers had been redeployed to bolster response teams.
The inspector said he hoped the issuing of laptops would prevent officers from having to return to police stations to file and complete paperwork.
It was also a way of keeping officers on the streets and not stuck behind a desk, Mr Thomas added.
"Some local police officers have been redeployed, mainly to the 999 response teams, leaving current staff to cover larger geographical areas," he said.
"The local officers are supported through partnership work to assist with longer-term community issues.
"At the end of September, the response teams across the whole force will be relocated to different locations in order to meet the demands we face across all communities.
"Locally, some response officers will be working from Leominster and others from Shrewsbury.
"They will continue to patrol this LJC area and respond to calls 24 hours a day."
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