A message from the Chief Constable about policing during the coronavirus outbreak

As things have changed over the last few days, everyone is coming to terms with what the COVID-19 outbreak means for them and the impact on their lives and the community around them. We are all thinking of our loved ones at this time and how we can help keep them – and ourselves – safe.

We must all work together for the greater good of us all across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland.

The response across LLR to the outbreak is being led by our health colleagues and they are doing an amazing job in the face of an ever changing picture and growing pressure on them and their resources.

We must consider what we are doing as the police to support health colleagues, whilst keeping our essential 24/7 policing operation on the road and in your community. These are unprecedented times, but we are prepared.

There are well rehearsed plans in place to deal with a pandemic, and we are working very closely with our partners across the force and the region.

Policing the community

Our policing response remains unchanged at the moment, with our frontline officers and staff out in your community responding to calls for help from the public, working to solve problems and combat crime.

I am immensely proud of the response from my officers and staff, who, in the face of a fast moving and developing situation, are committed to doing their duty and protecting the public.

We will be there to respond to emergency 999 calls. We will continue to assess what to prioritise as the impact of coronavirus on local communities, and on our own officers and staff, develops.

We have a plan that reacts to events and helps us to apply common sense judgements; we may need to scale back some community engagement events to enable us to deal with more critical emerging issues and we may need to respond differently to minor anti-social behaviour. We will keep you informed of any changes we are making when we make them. For instance, some beat surgeries have already been postponed to meet the guidance about social distancing.

It would be helpful to engage with us on line where you can report crime, anti-social behaviour and road traffic incidents, as well as find out useful information. Take a look here: https://www.leics.police.uk/  

We are asking you to limit your visits to police stations – and to not go at all if you have any concerning symptoms.

By keeping yourself safe – self-isolating if necessary – and taking precautions over hygiene and cleanliness, you can help protect the more vulnerable, and those colleagues of mine who are committed to be out in public, fighting crime and protecting the public.

So how can you help? It would be hugely helpful if you could:

Read the PHE guidance on social distancing which is here https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/coronavirus-covid-19-list-of-guidance

For information from the force, please follow our social media pages – @leicspolice on Twitter and Leicestershire Police on Facebook.

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Please also feel free to say ‘thank you’ to my officers and staff as you see them out and about. They are a remarkable bunch who are getting on with policing in remarkable times. I am very proud of them.