Dinnington police to hear concerns at surgeries

The sessions will take place at Dinnington Resource Centre on Laughton Road, where officers will also offer crime prevention advice.

Staff will be on hand every Wednesday between 1.30pm and 3pm.

Evening sessions will also be held from 5.30pm to 7pm on Friday, May 5, Wednesday, May 17, Friday, June 2 and Friday, June 16.

The sessions come after 3,300 people backed a campaign for police to have a permanent base in the town following the murders of 16-year-old Leonne Weeks in January, and the killing of Steven Fretwell in Laughton Common in December.

A South Yorkshire Police spokesman said: “We welcome your thoughts, so please attend these meetings or keep a look out for updates on Facebook and Twitter, where meeting dates will continue to be published.”

Dinnington is covered by a local policing team, with support from joint specialist operations and response cars.

But its police station closed last year, after the then district commander Chief Supt Jason Harwin said that “financially it doesn’t make sense”.

Policing models across South Yorkshire are currently under review — Chief Con Stephen Watson visited Rotherham Town Hall on Tuesday as part of the consultation.