Hundreds of North Canterbury residents turned out to a fiery meeting in Culverden on Wednesday night, angry about a proposal to remove the town’s two police officers.
A proposed restructure in the region could see rural police services focused around two24/7 hubs in Rangiora and Rolleston.
Residents who packed out the gym at Culverden’s Amuri Area School said this would leave them more vulnerable.
They said the restructuring meant police were either an hour’s drive away in Rangiora or 90 minutes away in Rolleston and that was too far.
Police said locals would be no worse off under the new model.
The owner of Culverden’s local Four Square, Andrew Whittleston, said the town should retain its two police officers.
“Being in a local shop we’re so vulnerable for all sorts of theft. We’ve had callouts where the local police have been there in the shop before I’ve even got there. You can’t tell me that response is going to be the same in Rangiora.
“They are saying the station will still be open, there may be officers around the area but we’re still going to lose that rapport and that knowledge.”
The public meeting was organised by Federated Farmers, which said the proposed changes would mean fewer officers on the ground.
District Commander Superintendent Tony Hill said the restructure, which had been 18 months in the making, was a “refocusing” rather than a reduction in sworn officers.
Superintendent Tony Hill said the restructure aims to improve response times and maintain service quality. Photo / RNZ
Some roles would be disestablished but those officers would be encouraged to apply for other roles and a new rural liaison officer role would be created, he said.
Hill said the restructure only proposed closing the sole-charge station at Arthur’s Pass and other stations would remain open, but with a different model of policing that would reflect current demand.
Culverden veterinarian Annabel Harris said the town did not want to lose its visible police presence.
“We don’t believe that people coming from an area like Rangiora, even if they are staying at the motels or wherever, that they’ll have that same connection and presence, and that calming effect and that controlling effect that that provides,” she said.
“I think what we’ve currently got in place is a great example of community policing working well. And we don’t want to lose that.”
Culverden farmer Adam Williamson said having local officers around helped deter crime.
“That’s ultimately what’s happening here in our view, that the visibility of these local guys and any rural police really, their biggest job is preventing the crime in the area.”
Culverden locals Annabel Harris (L) and Adam Williamson. Photo / RNZ
But Superintendent Tony Hill said the aim of the restructure was to have more front-line staff visible and available to communities.
He told the public meeting that the police service would not be worse in Culverden.
“I thought, isn’t it great that the community really value our two staff that are here. I think what they really value is the service we provide and, under the proposal, we still have that capability to do that great problem solving that rural staff do, and also improve our response times in there,” he said.
Hill said almost two-thirds of the calls from Culverden were actually about policing on the roads.
He said the meeting had given officers a lot to think about and they would take all concerns into consideration.
The restructure proposal went out to all Canterbury police staff for feedback last week, with consultation closing on August 18.
