STANLEY Town Council has decided to provide further funding for police vehicles for the community.

Stanley Town Council first provided cash toward two marked police for Neighbourhood Policing teams in the town three years ago.

The council chipped in £37,000 to help pay for two marked cars to be used by officers based in South Moor and Catchgate.

The newly-arrived Vauxhall Corsas doubled the number of vehicles available to officers in the two villages, allowing a quicker response to incidents of anti-social behaviour.

The move followed concerns raised by residents at the regular Police And Communities Together (Pact) meetings held in the area.

Since then they have continued to fund the vehicles and recently decided to make provision for funding for another year.

Stanley Neighbourhood Team Acting Inspector Dave Clarke said: "The additional vehicles provided by Stanley Town Council make an enormous difference to the service offered by our community policing teams.

“The vehicles enable our support officers to respond to a greater number of community issues, particularly those decided as priorities by the public at Pact meetings, such as youth nuisance and antisocial behaviour.

"This is a first-rate example of police working in partnership with a forward looking town council; to ensure key services are maintained in the current climate and as we look to the future."