The public will welcome the extended opening times of police stations, although not so long ago all major stations were open 24 hours a day.

The annual report of the Sussex Police Authority and the Chief Constable makes great play of the fact that the police station at Selsey will be opening to the public for the first time ever.

I was born in the police house in Station Road (now Church Road), Selsey, in the Thirties and can assure the police authority and the Chief Constable that it was open 24 hours a day.

When my father was out, my mother would deal with members of the public, take in lost property, note details of driving licences and insurance and endless other tasks.

This was accepted as the norm for the police officer's wife.

Selsey is a busy beat, especially in summer but it was no different to a large number of rural detachments throughout East and West Sussex.

-I Eady, Worthing