Fish van is plaice to meet police

http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/england/lancashire/8370193.stm

Version 0 of 1.

A fish van which visits a rural Lancashire community is being used by police to hold meetings.

Officers in the Carnforth area are trying new ways of reaching residents for their Police and Communities Together (PACT) gatherings.

The monthly fish van which visits Silverdale and the mobile library are two of the places being visited.

Pc Jo Humphrey said the unusual locations had made people more likely to chat about issues.

Book borrowers

"With the PACT meetings held in community centres and similar places we found we weren't getting that many coming along - especially if they didn't actually have any issues to raise," Pc Humphrey said.

"But we have found that if we go to them, by organising these slightly unusual PACT meetings at places where we know people will be, then we develop a better relationship with the community and people are more likely to chat to us about things that are bothering them."

The mobile library visits four locations, which police visit to speak to the book borrowers.

"It makes sense for us to hop on and make use of a service that is already reaching out to residents further afield, especially the old and the vulnerable," Pc Humphrey said.

Coffee mornings are also used for the meetings and a meeting is also held on the village green in Over Kellett.

Pc Humphrey said: "This works particularly well when the weather is nice and the villagers sit on the benches to discuss any issues that they want to raise.

"Of course, if it's raining then we use the police vehicle to stay dry!"