A TV documentary last week slammed policing in parts of South Bucks. In a frank interview with crime reporter SYREETA LUND, Chiltern Vale Police commander Rob Beckley answers back.

THE police are doing everything they can to ensure that communities feel safe from crime, according to Superintendent Rob Beckley.

Supt Beckley spoke out after a recent Channel Four Documentary on crime, which ranked South Bucks as the worst of 375 local authorities on police performance.

Based on research carried out at Leeds University, the programme claimed that police performance in the area is 'failing the community'.

Supt Beckley is annoyed that he did not get a chance to put forward his views in the documentary. He disputes the academics' findings.

He said: "I did feel the documentary showed an inaccurate picture of life in South Bucks. After all I have chosen to live here myself and I would not live somewhere I did not feel safe."

Although he admits that wealthy areas such as Gerrards Cross, which boast more millionaires than virtually anywhere in the country, can attract criminals from other places, he said that the violent crime rate in the area is one of the lowest in England and Wales.

Supt Beckley added: "We do need to work on those areas but we have been carrying out a number of initiatives to try to target those problem areas.

"The area is particularly wealthy and criminals know this. It is accessible from the motorway and we have a lot of travelling criminals who come here from areas like Slough.

"We have one of the highest rates of car ownership in the country and so I believe you can't compare us to deprived areas in Liverpool where the number of cars owned by people don't even compare. Although car crime is a real pain it does not threaten life or limb."

Indeed Home Office figures show that crime has fallen by ten per cent in the Chiltern Vale Area and rates of violent crime are low, going against national trends. However, overall figures for recorded crime in general in the Thames Valley Area have increased by 1.4 per cent on last year.

The number of police officers per head of population is still one of the lowest in the country in Supt Beckley's area even though he paints a positive picture of crime fighting.

The police are suffering from a recruitment crisis caused by a number of factors including a buoyant employment market which gives would-be police officers more options and also allows them to move on quicker. The cost of living in Bucks is also a major factor.

Although the force has cut down on the numbers of senior ranking officers and have the capability to increase from 232 police officers to 242 in Chiltern Vale, the force cannot meet this level because of the recruitment crisis.

Retaining officers is also a problem particularly when the Metropolitan Police offer more attractive wages because of London weighting.

Supt Beckley, said: "The financial cuts we had did hit us hard but we have come back and are doing well to maintain the numbers of officers we have.

"However, it is increasingly frustrating even when we have the money because we can't get the police officers."

He said of the current resources that they "only have so much butter and that has to be spread thinly" to fulfil all the different demands on the police, including the piles of paperwork needed.

Bucks county councillor Margaret Dewar (Beaconsfield, Con), a cabinet member for community services, feared the levels of crime in the area.

She said: "I do think the cuts had a big effect and it seems that when you go to your local police station it is only open for an hour and run by a volunteer. If you phone up to report a crime in Beaconsfield you end up going through to Milton Keynes and the person who answers doesn't even know where Beaconsfield is.

"I have personal experience of crime like when my daughter was burgled and had a camera stolen with pictures of her baby on there. She was absolutely terrified and I don't know whether the police are aware of how much something like that can affect a person. It's not a minor thing.

"Elderly people who are the most vulnerable want to feel safe. Like many others they want to see a visible police presence like a police officer cycling past their house."

Yet Supt Beckley said that he is "positively discriminating" towards rural areas and community beat officers.

He added: "In a time when society feels chaotic, many hark back to the golden days and look to the police for a sense of order. If we were to meet the psychological demands of people we would have to have hundreds more officers and unfortunately we have to live in the real world."

Police initiatives in the Beaconsfield and Gerrards Cross areas include:

Extra funding used for increased patrols in rural areas and a crackdown on fly tipping and encampments .

Linking with the mobile library scheme in order to visit members of the public in villages.

Beaconsfield police have been behind setting up a cybercafe for young people.

Targeting ram-raiders in Gerrards Cross and Beaconsfield.

Operation Groom aimed at reducing burglaries, run in partnership with local companies and South Bucks District Council. Residents and businesses can get a ten per cent reduction on security products. In a bid to increase security, officers in Beaconsfield have set up routine patrol routes through high-risk areas.

Operation Glitter targets car crime using high-profile policing and covert operations.

Pubwatch those causing problems in pubs can be targeted and barred from all pubs to prevent disorder.