CANVEY Town Council is being urged to spend some of its reserves on dedicated Police Community Support Officers for the island.

At Monday night’s meeting with Police, Fire, and Crime Commissioner Roger Hurst, members of public were told that specific PCSOs can be dedicated to Canvey, if the town council is willing to fund them.

PCSOs are paid, full time officers, who work on the frontline of the police force providing a visible and reassuring presence on the streets and tackling the menace of antisocial behaviour.

And former town councillor, Colin Letchford, is urging the council to spend some of its reserves on adding support for the police on the island.

He said: “The proposal was put forward previously when I was on the council, but it was rejected as the police said they would not be a dedicated Canvey PCSO, but could work anywhere.

“But now they have made it clear any PCSO paid for by Canvey Town Council, would be dedicated specifically to the island, unless they were in dire straits elsewhere.

“I know for a fact when I left the council just over a year ago, they had almost £400,000 in reserves, that number will still easily be above £300,000.

“This is exactly what residents have been asking for, and there is no doubt it would be effective.

“If you have someone in uniform, in direct contact with the police, it will help, and in the past PCSOs have always been great at getting to know the community, knowing the area and knowing the issues.”

Canvey Deputy Mayor, Barry Campagna, confirmed that it is a discussion the town council have had for a number of years, but insisted all options must be assessed before any final decision was made.

“It is something that we have talked about for a long time, and one we will continue to discuss.

“We are enthusiastic about it, but at the same time we want to make sure everything is in place and that it is the best option for Canvey.

“We want assurances that they will be based on Canvey, of course there will be emergencies, but we don’t want to pay for PCSO who won’t be here.

“As I said, it is a discussion that will continue, and when decided, will be made public as soon as possible. There are a lot of options and we want to make sure we choose the right one for Canvey.”