“THERE is a great deal of dissatisfaction with the police and their service to the local community.”

This was the message from one Arun councillor who warned some people would ‘become vigilantes’ if Sussex Police didn’t step up its game when it came to dealing with car break-ins and burglary.

At a meeting of the district council’s overview select committee on Tuesday (March 10), members were given feedback from a recent police and crime panel, attended by commissioner Katy Bourne.

Paul English (Con, Felpham East) was one of several members to raise concerns about the way the Arun area was being served.

Mr English told the meeting that it was ‘very rare’ for police to attend car break-ins, burglaries or incidents of criminal damage, with people often just given a crime number.

He added: “I just wish that we had more of the local police that we find we need when we’re in trouble. That is not coming forward.

“People are going to become vigilantes. It’s almost heading that way on some of the estates where cars are getting broken into.

“CCTV is catching images but for some reason it can’t be used by police.

“We need to get this sorted out. The police need to get this sorted out.”

Mr English called on people to report every incident in an effort to create crime ‘hot-spots’.

He said: “If you don’t have hot spots, the police will not attend that quickly. If you have 200 people reporting their cars are getting damaged and broken into, those police and those officers of that area will turn up.

“It can’t go on – a line has to be drawn.”

Sussex Police recently increased its portion of the council tax bills by £10, a rise members described as ‘considerable’.

Paul Dendle (Con, Arundel & Walberton) had one money making idea for the Force – moving out of Grade I listed Malling House ‘which is probably worth a fortune’ and setting up in cheaper premises somewhere on the coast.

Accusing the police of ‘missing a trick’ when it came to managing the buildings it owned, he added that Mrs Bourne ‘should be doing something a bit more tangible and a bit more dynamic on that’.

There was some positive feedback, though.

Amanda Worne (Lib Dem, Yapton) praised the work of the PCSOs in Yapton, saying they had made a ‘big difference’ and she had been contacted a lot less about ‘break-ins and vandalism and bad behaviour from youths’.

Mrs Bourne said: “My own experience of talking to local people and local councillors is that they feel safe in Arun.

“A focus group in Arundel earlier this month (with representatives from local private and public organisations and councils), reported their levels of confidence in local policing were very high.

“They all  rated their feelings of safety  as being 8/10 to 10/10.

“I completely understand the distress of becoming a victim of crime and that people may have an expectation of an immediate police response.

“Sussex Police record all incidents reported to them and assess their response depending upon risk and harm and vulnerability factors.

“That will mean that many incidents are dealt with over the phone by trained officers but when appropriate police officers or PCSOs will follow up incidents in person.

“999 calls are answered very promptly and where there is a threat or prospect of apprehending offenders response teams are dispatched.”

She added: “It is always worth reporting incidents, and over the past six months, 101 waiting times have come down by over 70 per cent with more people getting their issues resolved than before.”