LACK of local knowledge from Essex Police bosses left Corringham town centre vulnerable to crime and anti-social behaviour.

That was the message put to Essex Police and Crime Commissioner Roger Hirst on a visit to Thurrock this evening (Thursday, 27 October) when he faced an audience of residents at Homesteads Hall in Stanford-le-Hope.

The meeting had been arranged after local protests and claims, led by Homesteads councillor Gary Byrne, that Mr Hirst was ignoring local issues.

Mr Hirst was a guest of the Corringham, Fobbing & Homesteads Community Forum, which was chaired by Roy Jones, and gave a presentation about wider issues across the force before taking questions from the audience.

Almost immediately he found himself on the backfoot with a number of residents pressing him about anti-social behaviour issues in Corringham and a lack of visible policing.

Roger Hirst, flanked by officers and meeting chairman Roy Jones.

Mr Hirst was accompanied by two officers, one of whom explained that on an average shift in the evening there were just six to seven comunity policing team officers available across Thurrock and it was difficult to cover every area with an individual officer.

That message came on the day Essex Police had announced it was on track by March next year to have a record number of 3,755 police officers - the most the force has ever had.

The statement that so few officers on patrol in Thurrock at night came as shocking news to residents, particularly those who believed the two towns of Stanford and Corringham had been given dedicated town policing teams.

It transpires they have – but they don't appear to work outside daytime hours and there was an even more surprising revelation to come.

Resident John Fox revealed that it has recently been established that senior officers in the force, when classifying local boundaries, has not realised Corringham was a separate town to Stanford and it appeared policing levels were based on statistics taking into account just Stanford town centre, which sits in the Stanford West ward.

Corringham town centre, which sits in the Stanford East and Corringham Town ward was not recognised on the force's operational plan. That's despite the fact that for years it had its own police station!

Mr Fox, who serves on a liaison panel with Essex police, told the meeting it had been recognised two years ago that Corringham should, like Stanford, should have its own two members of a town policing force.

But even though the mistake had been recognised two years ago, the officers had still not been allocated.

Mr Hirst said he would take the matter up with Chief Constable BJ Harrington.

He was also briefed by residents on problems of bad behaviour by gangs of youths, particularly in the evenings around the Grover Walk area, with many troublesome youths congregating near the Premier convenience store.