WOTTON town councillors have raised concerns that policing in the town is “severely lacking” with the sight of seeing a policeman on the street dubbed a rarity.

After a discussion at Monday’s town council meeting, councillors agreed to compose a letter containing their worries which includes fears that “little preventative policing is taking place.”

In response Gloucestershire’s police and crime commissioner Martin Surl stated that no less importance is being placed on Wotton despite “tough decisions” having to be made.

“The town council does indeed understand that budgets are being squeezed and that police authorities around the country are having to prioritise resources where necessary,” the letter reads.

“However, the town council feels that police coverage in rural areas such as Wotton are now so severely lacking that seeing ‘a policeman on the street’ is quite a rarity.

“Visits to Wotton are only undertaken in response to a crime or emergency.

“There is very little preventative policing taking place and the general public feeling in Wotton is that it has lost any relationship which was established by former community policing initiatives.

“We do not have any complaint about any individual member of staff, and consider that all work very hard at their roles, however our complaint concerns the lack of resources afforded to community policing.”

There are currently three members of the police force covering Wotton, sergeant Elizabeth Lovell, PC Matt Firth and PCSO Mark Lifton.

However Wotton town councillors state that these officers cover a much wider area which extends from Ozleworth over to the River Severn.

The town council’s statement continued: “We are very becoming very concerned about the ability of the Police Authority to be able to do its job effectively when resources are stretched so thinly to cover such a wide area.”

It feels the community must be “reassured that Wotton is not a forgotten entity.”

In response, PCC Surl told the Gazette that funding cuts have led to a harsh reduction to police deployment.

“The cuts to which the town council refers inevitably have an impact on day to day working as would be the case in any other public service or business,” he said.

“The harsh reality is that it has resulted in the loss of around a quarter of the number of officers the constabulary once had, with a knock-on effect on deployment.

“The police recognise that neighbourhood policing suffered as a result and I have stressed the need to address this in my new Police and Crime Plan.

“The constabulary is now working on how to deliver effective and visible neighbourhood policing within their constraints.

"Chief constable Rod Hansen has assured me that rural areas will have a clear neighbourhood policing offer which builds closer relationships that will maintain confidence in the force and make communities safer.

“Whilst tough decisions have had to be made, it does not mean any less importance is placed on Wotton or any other rural community.”