SIR – So West Mercia Police chief constable David Shaw has announced that as well as a dozen or so police stations closing across the force area, the number of local policing teams will almost halve from 145 to 82 (Worcester News, February 22).

I presume the reason why police are going to the trouble of changing the name of local policing teams to safer neighbourhood teams is that police think if you say “safer neighbourhood” often enough the public will actually think their communities are safer.

If police stations are being closed then surely police officers will be based further away from the communities they are sworn to serve; will this not result in increased police response times to incidents?

Ironically, one of the police stations earmarked for closure is at Hagley, which was upgraded in 2009 at a cost of some £275,000.

I also wonder why one of the police buildings being disposed of is not Hindlip Hall – the headquarters of the force and where senior police are based in surrounding splendour.

That must be the most expensive property of all, both in value and running costs.

Surely this could be disposed of and the chief constable and his senior colleagues can then be based at Worcester police station in the heart of the city where they can serve the community most effectively.

Apparently this reduced service to the public is being done in order to save £1.5 million.

The force could save £7.5 million per year by abolishing all 250 or so community support officer posts. After all, CSOs are only civilians dressed up to look like police, with no power of arrest and very few other powers.

PETER ROWBOTTOM

West Hagley