A NEW series of community drop-in events will be held at a York library to help the public interact with police.

The events, known as ‘Keeping Safe Community Drop-Ins’, will be held each week at Acomb Explore, to help more members of the public speak to local officers, gain crime prevention advice and information.

The move is a pilot scheme that will run for three months, and will also encourage local residents to sign up to the North Yorkshire Community Messaging system to receive alerts about crime and incidents in their area.

Natasha Almond, the force’s citizens in policing coordinator manager, said: “Acomb police station office is open to the public on a part-time basis thanks to our Police Support Volunteers, however, the service is underused and people rarely call in.

“So if people aren’t coming to us, we want to take our services to them. We have great support from our volunteers who are willing to provide this service in their own time. My thanks go to them for giving up their time and to Acomb Explore for their enthusiasm and help with this service.”

Fiona Williams, chief executive of York Explore, said: “Libraries are safe spaces in communities where everyone is welcome and we are looking forward to working more closely with north Yorkshire police to build a more resilient community.” The events will run every Friday between February 24 and May 19, between 11.45am and 1.45pm, and the scheme will be evaluated after the three-month pilot.