Tenbury police may be based in library (From Ludlow Advertiser)

Tenbury police may be based in library

8:00am Sunday 10th March 2013 in News By Adrian Kibbler

A BID is being made to have police based in Tenbury Library.

The call is part of a move to make more use of the Library building in Teme Street.

While the Library has come out as one of the best in the whole of Worcestershire, Ken Pollock Tenbury’s member for Worcestershire County Council believes that more use could be made of the building.

He has also suggested that it is an ideal site for an outreach base for staff from the Job Centre to enable unemployed people from the town and surrounding area having to make the journey to Leominster to sign on.

But that is not all because he thinks that more use could be made of the upstairs space in the Library that has the potential to become a venue for public meetings.

“We have a great library that comes at the very top in so many categories but there is not extensive use of the upstairs area,” said Coun Pollock.

“It is right at the centre of the community and would be an ideal location for the police.

“They would not have to be there all of the time but could use it to provide a presence at the heart of the town.”

His suggestion follows the decision of West Mercia Police to close the station in Tenbury and find somewhere that officers can share.

Coun Pollock said that he understands that having a police station in Tenbury can be reassuring but that this could be misleading.

“When people go to the police station now and press the buzzer they actually speak to someone in Worcester via a phone line,” he added.

“I have also suggested that Tenbury library could be an ideal place for Job Centre Plus to have a presence although with the financial constraints I realise that this may not go down well with the Department of Work and Pensions.

“However, I have always believed that it is sensible to take the few to the many rather than the many to the few. It could save unemployed people from Tenbury having to go to Leominster every two weeks to sign on which is difficult to get to on public transport and expensive.”

Another suggestion is that the side entrance to the library be opened in the evening so that the upstairs could be used by groups and for public meetings.

“It would be necessary to make sure that there was no access to the library but otherwise it would make sense as I believe that public buildings should be used by as many people as possible,” added Coun Pollock.