Shalford Police Station is now fully staffed and ready for business, seven months after it first opened.

The station, which covers an area with a population of around 25,000, is currently based at a temporary site in The Street, but the officers are working hard to make people aware they are there and that they are ready for action.

There are four response officers, three community officers and Sergeant Bob Bell working at the station, which is based in Shalford because of the geographical benefits.

Sgt Bell said: "There has never been a station here before and this only came about because of the rural policing review. What we want is to let people know we are here and that they can come and talk to us about any problems they may have.

"We are here for the whole rural area around Braintree and this emphasises to these areas that we are committed to rural policing and we are not going away. We just hope to keep crime at as low a rate as possible," he added.

Sgt Bell also hopes that by having this rural station, the local community will feel safer and more willing to share any fears or worries they have.

"Each officer has about 2,000 people on their patch, and hopefully what will happen is that people will start to recognise them and then build up a rapport with them. Hopefully then they will feel at ease talking to us.

"We are going to do the best we can and we are currently working at getting used to being a team. It is also all about getting to know all the parts of the community," he added.

The station is currently waiting for an outside phone, so people can call direct to Braintree Police Station when Shalford is closed, and Sgt Bell said their work now is all about publicising the station.

"What we basically want is people to know that we are here, and that we are here for them, they are our priority."

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