New Forest councils' fury after police station hours are cut (From Bournemouth Echo)

New Forest councils' fury after police station hours are cut

7:00pm Monday 8th March 2010 in

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CUTS in police station opening hours in New Milton and Ringwood have angered councillors who say they were not consulted.

Until the beginning of March, New Milton and Ringwood stations were open from 9am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, with a 45-minute lunchtime closure.

The revised hours – heralded Forest-wide by Hampshire Constabulary as an improvement – has led to earlier closing times of 5pm Monday to Thursday and 4.30pm on a Friday with a 30-minute lunchtime closure.

That has led to a reduction of four-and-a-quarter hours a week.

Stations in Totton, Hythe and Lyndhurst have seen minor amendments and Fordingbridge’s hours remain unaltered.

Only Lymington has seen a gain.

It used to be open from 9am to 6pm on weekdays and from 10am to 4pm on Saturdays and Sundays.

The new hours there are 9am to 7pm daily, an increase of 13 hours weekly.

When asked if police had consulted, Ringwood mayor Christine Ford replied: “No, we weren’t , not on the town council. It would have been very helpful. We weren’t asked to comment.

“Hours should certainly not be cut by any means.

“I’m seeing my beat officer on Saturday so I’ll run it past her.

“I’m not very happy at all.”

New Forest District Council crime and disorder portfolio-holder Cllr Goff Beck has had a number of complaints about New Milton police station opening hours and has raised the issue with top brass.

“I’m disappointed that I was not advised of the amended schedules,” he said.

“I’m angry about that, and it’s coupled in with that I have not been informed about the reappointment of the inspectors in the three New Forest sectors.

“I was told that it was res-ources, namely they didn’t have the personnel to do the job.”

Chief Inspector Gary Cooper said: “Across the district the slight reduction in opening hours in New Milton and Ringwood has been balanced out by the extended hours at Lymington police station, which is more centralised and will now provide a consistent seven days a week service to the New Forest as a whole.

“We always engage in the consultation process with our partners when we are able to do so but on this occasion the decision had to be made to fit our own resources around providing the best possible service to the forest as a whole.”