Police to launch ‘real-time’ neighbourhood website (From The Advertiser Series)

Durham Police to launch ‘real-time’ neighbourhood website

11:20am Thursday 24th November 2011 in News By Stuart Arnold

WAY FORWARD: PC John Donoghue in Darlington with a mobile phone showing how the new Durham Police website will look

A POLICE force says a website allowing residents to follow real-time police activity in their neighbourhood will be a “vital tool” in tackling crime.

Durham Police have gone into partnership with technology company C2 Software to develop a web presence which will allow officers to contribute reports and create, update and publish pages.

Residents will be encouraged to enter their postcode and view Twitter and Facebook feeds from police on the beat, as well as related images and videos through Flickr and YouTube.

The force is not the first to use the likes of Twitter. In October last year Greater Manchester Police “tweeted” every single crime they had to deal with over the course of 24 hours.

Crime mapping is also now routinely used by police to give street level updates on crimes via the internet.

However, the planned website – durham.police.uk – will pull together a number of social media strands in the same place.

A mobile phone application is also being developed, giving access to the same information through smartphones and tablets.

Before the launch, which will take place early next year, a consultation process has been taking place involving members of the public and neighbourhood policing teams to establish what they want from the final product.

Superintendent Bill Dutton, of Durham Police, said: “The new website will enable us to engage and work better with communities, to understand their priorities and views.

“We are about protecting neighbourhoods, solving problems and tackling criminals.

“This website is a vital tool in that quest.”

Finlay Carmichael, managing director of C2 Software, said: “For us to harness the power of social media to bring Durham Constabulary into much closer communication with the people in local communities is incredibly exciting.”

PC Andy Metcalfe, secretary of Durham Police Federation, which represents rank and file officers, said: “Anything that we can use to engage with people is fantastic, but it still won’t replace real police out there with their boots on the ground.

“Certain members of the public, such as the elderly, will also have never used a computer and would not know the first thing about Twitter or Facebook.”

A spokesman for the force said: “The force website and other social media are there to supplement the more traditional ways of engaging with the public, not replace them.

“Regular meetings are held in every neighbourhood where local people can raise issues they would like addressed, and anyone who has a general, non-urgent inquiry can always ring us on 0345-6060-365.”