Police Community Support Officers

The introduction of Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs) in the Eastern Division of Dorset Police (covering the district/borough areas of Christchurch, East Dorset, Purbeck and most of North Dorset ) follows the successful two year trial of Community Wardens in Purbeck, the introduction of PCSOs in the Western Division a year ago and the decision to introduce PCSOs throughout Dorset Police from 1 April 2004.

PCSOs in North Dorset

Within North Dorset there are a number of PCSOs who will be working in the Neighbourhood Policing teams which will be rolled out across the district before April 2008

The PCSOs are dressed in a uniform similar to that of a police officer and are intended to provide high visibility foot patrols to reduce the fear of crime and to support the police in tackling anti-social behaviour and have been provided with limited powers to assist them with this. These include the ability to confiscate alcohol, power to require an individual's name and address and issuing fixed penalty notices to deal with problems such as dog fouling and littering.

The PCSOs should be seen as the eyes and ears of the community and a vital part of their role is to feed intelligence to the police and other agencies where appropriate.

For further information about your local PCSOs please contact your local police station or visit the Dorset Police website.