A POLICE force which covers Bromsgrove and Droitwich Spa has received national recognition for the progress it has made in addressing racial issues.

Winning the Race: Embracing Diversity -- a report by Her Majesty's Inspector of Constabulary (HMIC), published last Thursday states West Mercia is demonstrating good practice in the way it deals with racist incidents and recruits ethnic minority staff.

Deputy chief constable Peter Neyroud said: "Out of the 100 potential recruits who have applied to the force as a result of a regional recruitment campaign, 12 per cent were from ethnic minority groups."

Bromsgrove's Sgt Jerry Reakes-Williams said there had been 28 incidents of a racist nature in the district reported to the police since March 2000.

This compares with more than 150 in Redditch in the same period.