Meet Melton's dedicated beat bobbies
The Melton Times was granted the opportunity to get up close and personal to the local neighbourhood policing team at their station HQ on King Street.
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Hide AdThese are dedicated beat officers whose job is to become a visible presence in the community and build up trusting relationships with local people.
They can often also get the call to assist Melton’s response officers deal with serious criminal activity and emergency incidents.
What may surprise many are the jobs that many of the neighbourhood policing team used to – they have backgrounds in the funeral sector, a health spa, dog kennels and the NHS, for example.
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Hide AdPc Andrew French has been based at the Melton station for years after working for a funeral directors for a quarter of a century,
"Building up relationships with local people is key to what we do, particularly in rural areas,” he said.
"There is nothing better than getting out of the car and talking to people. Nobody can talk to you when you are travelling at 30mph.”
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Hide AdHe is working closely with Pc Natalie Dandy, who has been a police officer for less than a month.
They cover the Melton Rural beat, a wide area which includes 38 villages, responding to rural crime, road safety and other incidents as well as engaging with the locals.
Pc Dandy, who previously worked in dog kennels near Loughborough, commented: “I always wanted to be a police officer. I’ve learned a lot already.
“It is a very interesting job. Every day is different.”
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Hide AdThere are similarities in the career Pc Shane Sanderson used to have before joining Leicestershire Police.
A Geordie who served in the Royal Navy, he was drafted into the Melton neighbourhood team after being stationed with the navy at an RAF base in Rutland.
"The code of ethics and the rank structure is very similar in the police to what it is in the navy,” he said.
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