Petition launched for new police station in South Yorkshire

Around 770 people have signed the petition, which calls for a station to serve Dinnington and Anston in Rotherham.

Resident Tim Wells, who launched the petition, suggested that some of the cash used to run the office of South Yorkshire's Police and Crime Commissioner, Dr Alan Billings, could be used to fund the station.

The role of the PCC is to oversee the way South Yorkshire Police is run, funded and performs.

Mr Wells said: "Dinnington and Anston, a community of 25,000 people, warrant a police station.

"Having a police station will allow the public to feel safer and be able to go there if their safety is threatened.

"The public should have a public door to the police in their neighbourhood, where they can speak face to face with the organisation.

"The station will also act as a deterrent to criminal activity, as police officers come and go 24/7, 365 days a year in the area around it.

"Having a police station will reduce the crime in the area and allow the police to be more proactive in preventing it."

He said since Dinnington police station closed last year, to save cash, 'crime appears to have increased in the area'.

The station closed to save £12,000 a year and South Yorkshire Police now rents a room in Dinnington Resource Centre to have a base in the area.

The petition is to be delivered to PCC Billings and Chief Constable Stephen Watson.