Public invited to have their say on police force

Nick Evans, deputy police and crime commissioner for Gloucestershire, said the survey will allow "direct action" to be taken

Members of the public are being invited to share their thoughts on a police force so it can be "held to account", its deputy police and crime commissioner (PCC) says.

The Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner for Gloucestershire said its Trust and Confidence survey would give residents the chance to "their honest views on policing in the county".

Deputy PCC Nick Evans said the survey would allow the office to take "direct action" following local and national cases that had "led the public to just question their trust and confidence" in policing.

Some Gloucester residents shared mixed feelings about the force, including concerns regarding racial profiling and patrols, the office said.

When asked by BBC Radio Gloucestershire about his feelings on Gloucestershire Police, Rio Collett-Newell, 19, said he felt there was "a negative view based on minorities".

He said: "Even just talking to them, really, and just being around them, I've felt disrespected.

"It's just not knowing when you are going to have that negative interaction. It feels like: 'Will I be taken seriously?'"

In response, Mr Evans said: "When do you have those negative experiences, it's really important we do something to put that right and show that policing cares, that they really want to improve and that's why we're doing surveys like this, so we can get the data to be able to prove it."

Mr Collett-Newell said he has felt "disrespected" by police officers

Louis Danby, 39, said the police were "pretty good" if "you're respectful to them".

"I think they're understaffed and probably underfunded but so is every other public sector at the moment," he added.

The deputy PCC said it was the role of the office to ensure there was an "efficient and effective force".

He said of the survey: "It's a really great opportunity to get some of that direct feedback back from people about what they would like to see, areas that they might feel unsafe and issues that you'd like policing to focus on."

The survey can be accessed via the Your Community Alerts website.