New initiative aims to get Lancashire Talking
Written by Skywave Radio News on July 2, 2020
Lancashire Constabulary is launching a new initiative to get the county talking about how it can improve its services.
Following on from a successful pilot in Hyndburn in January this year, the programme called Lancashire Talking, asks residents via a few online questions, about what it’s like to live in their area. It aims to find out what issues matter most to communities and is an opportunity for people to raise any concerns they may have.
Significantly, the feedback received via Lancashire Talking enables Neighbourhood Policing Teams, together with partner agencies, to act on the information received and tackle the issues raised. In doing so, people are given a voice in how the Constabulary prioritises its Neighbourhood Policing activity. Subscribers to the Constabulary’s community messaging system In The Know will then receive updates from their Neighbourhood Policing Team about the action taken to tackle their community’s local issues.
Chief Superintendent Sam Mackenzie, Head of Local Policing at Lancashire Constabulary said: “Listening to the concerns of our communities and working with them to tackle their concerns is at the heart of neighbourhood policing in Lancashire.
“Building upon this principle, I want to get Lancashire Talking about what the issues are in our neighbourhoods – what’s good and what could be improved. I don’t want our communities to be passive recipients of policing in our county, I want to work with the people of Lancashire to tackle the issues raised via their participation in Lancashire Talking.
“Doing so means we can have a more tailored, personalised policing response by area, with police, partners and local people working together on what matters most to our communities. “I hope that when it is safe to do so, we can return our Lancashire Talking programme to face-to-face conversations within our communities, but in the meantime, please join the conversations by sparing a moment to become a member of our community messaging system In The Know and answer the simple Lancashire Talking survey questions – it takes less than five minutes to complete.”
Clive Grunshaw, Lancashire Police and Crime Commissioner added: “Developing safe and confident communities is a key part of my Police and Crime Plan for Lancashire and I was pleased to support the launch of the Lancashire Talking pilot in Hyndburn earlier this year.
“It is so important that the communities we serve have the opportunity to raise their concerns and Lancashire Talking provides an additional way for local residents to do that.
“We know that people want the police to respond to the issues that most affect the areas they live in and it will be reassuring for residents to know that their feedback will be used to inform Neighbourhood Policing Teams across Lancashire.”
