TRUST in the police is at an all-time low when it comes to sexual and violent crime, the city council’s deputy leader has said.

West Mercia’s police and crime commissioner said the force is “not the Met” but admitted women are “disadvantaged by their gender”.

Police commissioner John Campion was speaking at a meeting of Worcester City Council’s Communities committee on Wednesday, July 24.

Committee chairman - and council deputy leader - Jabba Riaz asked him: “Picking up on public opinion I would say - and correct me if I’m wrong - that trust in the police is at an all-time low, especially in terms of sexual crimes and violence.

CHAIRMAN: Jabba Riaz raised concerns that people don't feel safe walking alone at nightCHAIRMAN: Jabba Riaz raised concerns that people don't feel safe walking alone at night (Image: Jabba Riaz)

“Whether it’s a woman walking through the high street and having her hijab pulled off or someone walking through a street late at night thinking ‘am I going to be safe or not?’

“These women and young girls will be thinking when they see a police officer ‘is it a friend or a foe?’

“How do you respond to that? How do you restore that confidence in policing? In serving the residents of this city and this county?”

Mr Campion responded: “Policing, in all the testing I do, has a public confidence rating at about the 80 per cent mark.

“Indeed, there is some dip in confidence when we see those who have been let down by the criminal justice system and we see less confidence in parts of our communities who are either seldom heard or disproportionately policed.

COMMISSIONER: John Campion says West Mercia is not the MetCOMMISSIONER: John Campion says West Mercia is not the Met (Image: Phil Wilkinson-Jones/LDRS)

“There is also a problem that 50 per cent of our society are disadvantaged by their gender. I talk to women who feel unsafe jogging about the place because of the unwanted attention they face.

“Those behaviours are unfortunately in policing as they are in society [but] I do believe we are trusted by the society we serve.

“We are not London. We are not the Met, where their figures are half the numbers in terms of the confidence that we see here.”

According to the most recent public confidence survey results published by Mr Campion’s office, 82 per cent of south Worcestershire residents said they had confidence in West Mercia Police.

Two thirds of people (68 per cent) said they trusted the police to use stop and search powers fairly and respectfully.