Domestic abuse and rural crime made police priorities in Norfolk crime plan

More visible policing, rural crime and a drive to tackle abuse and harassment against women have been identified as priorities for police in Norfolk.

A new police, crime and community safety plan sets out the details of what Norfolk’s Police and Crime Commissioner Giles Orpen-Smellie expects Norfolk Constabulary to deliver over the next two years.

It has been developed following a public consultation which asked people about what they saw as priorities for policing and safety and with the input of partners, including Norfolk chief constable Paul Sanford.

Mr Orpen-Smellie, who was elected last May, said: “I went out to the public with a set of ideas and the public were not shy in coming back with their comments.

“The two themes that came out particularly is that the public want to see visible policing and, given that 60pc of the population in Norfolk lives in rural areas, they wanted to see a greater emphasis on rural crime.”

A desire for people to see more police in communities was one of the most common requests.

But pressures on police to investigate more ‘behind closed doors’ crimes like domestic abuse and cybercrime meant officers were being kept off the streets, he said.