WEST Mercia police have been criticised in a district-wide survey of youth opinion.

At five Youthink meetings across the Malvern Hills district, 65 per cent of the 133 youngsters questioned said they did not think the police were accessible, 45 per cent said they did not think they did a good job and 53 per cent said they had no confidence in the force.

In the survey, which was carried out by the Worcestershire Youth Service on behalf of Malvern Hills District Council, only eight per cent answered 'yes' when asked if the police did a good job, while 16 per cent said they had confidence in the force.

A worrying 45 per cent of youngsters in the survey said they themselves had been a victim of crime.

Despite the criticism, a Malvern police sergeant who attended the meetings in Malvern, Knightwick, Ryall and Tenbury Wells said he was "immensely positive" about the survey's findings.

Sgt Robert Werner de Sondberg explained that he had been recruited to his post last year and he and his colleagues were determined to bring about a dramatic change in public opinion during the next three years.

"Overall it was immensely important that the police force were there to hear that we don't do a very good job, that we are not approachable and that they don't have confidence in us."

He said the message he took away from being able to explain his role to the young people at the meetings was that it was the start of change.

"I took it as a challenge on this occasion," he added. "It's been a reality check as far as the police go."

Asked about the number of young people who said they had been victims of crime, Sgt Werner de Sondberg said that because of the small numbers involved in the survey the statistic couldn't be relied on to say that Malvern was anything other than a low-crime area.

He added that staffing difficulties suffered by the local force in recent years had contributed to problems and poor public perception.

"I will bring continuity and consistency," he promised, "because I have no intention of going anywhere in the next three years.

"I will have very much a hands-on role to turn round some of these issues, to turn them into positives."

The sergeant said he would be at many more public meetings and forums in the future.