Police to be 'user friendly'

Plans for a "Coppers' Contract" were unveiled by David Blunkett today with a pledge to make the police more friendly and responsive to the public.

The Home Secretary said he wanted to improve the public's first impressions of their local force, make it easier to contact individual officers and ensure victims were kept up to date on court cases.

The moves to make officers more "consumer friendly" came as the Police Superintendents' Association stepped up demands for a new national police force to replace the current 43 different regions. Mr Blunkett is likely to reject the idea but will announce his own plans to impose "minimum standards of service" within the next two years.

There will also be a new national non-emergency number to deal with calls from victims of crime who want to be kept informed. Under the proposals, police officers will be "embedded" in their local communities, with regular newsletters and contact about what is happening in their area.

Mr Blunkett said today the police could learn a lot about customer service from High Street retailers.

"Attention to detail, setting expectations for staff behaviour, understanding people's needs, all these and more add up to a quality service, one you have confidence in," he said.

"Unlike health and education, the more contact people have with the police service, the less satisfied they are. I'm determined to change this for the better."