Christchurch needs knife dop-off point says councillor

Mudeford and Stanpit ward councillor Gillian Jarvis has called for a knife drop-off point in Christchurch after both Bournemouth and Poole were given one in an anti-knife campaign. 

Suggesting police have 'forgotten' the area, she said it is as much of an issue in the area and needs to be addressed by police. 

Cllr Jarvis said: "I saw on Facebook that they were doing this and I saw Bournemouth and Poole had one but I didn't see Christchurch. 

"The Christchurch community police officer came back and said we can't have one because we haven't got a police station which makes me quite angry because surely we can get another solution.

'Knife surrender bins' have been installed at Bournemouth and Poole police stations as part of a campaign that focuses on the consequences and dangers of carrying a knife."

A national campaign ran from May 14 to 19 and Cllr Jarvis believed more could have been done to drive the campaign in Christchurch suggesting a police van could have been used as a drop-off point. 

She said: "I think there's a certain percentage of people like myself as a councillor and a resident that knows what goes on and there's three quarters that don't know because they're retired or not on the internet.

"There's been three incidents over the last two or three weeks where the helicopter has gone up. It doesn't just happen in Bournemouth, it happens here."

Cllr Jarvis said while they have a helpful community officer, she would like police to build a more permanent base in the area. 

Removing stations over time, she expressed a wish for them to return so there is a place for people to go, not just online.

She said: "Why can't we make the civic offices into a big police station? We need to get a police station on the map.

"People want to report crime and it's ok to have community offers but they're not always about to talk."

The Echo has approached Dorset Police for comment.