Policing plea from Bishop Derek Webley
A LEADING Christian anti-gun campaigner who made history after becoming the first independent member of the force’s ruling West Midlands Police Authority to be elected chairman plans to launch a major listening campaign.
Bishop Derek Webley wants a forum where members of the public in all seven districts in the authority would be invited to a venue to give their views on policing.
He said: “We want to hear from people at a venue appointed venue. We want to hear what they think, what they see and how policing could be improved.
“This wouldn’t be a consultation process, it’s not a question and answer session but about listening. I will feed this information back to the Chief Constable.
“We would also like to hold three or four of the full authority meetings out of Lloyd House and in the districts to make them more accessible to the public.
“I feel that the authority’s message of being your authority, your voice, and how we do business, needs to be explained. This can be done by being closer to our community and accessible.”
The Rt Rev Webley, district bishop for Handsworth’s New Testament Church of God, hopes the roadshows which would be held in the next year, would increase public awareness of the Police Authority.
He said: “I’m honoured to have been chosen to take on this role, but also humbled to have been entrusted with this responsibility.
