West Mercia Police ‘Twitterthon’ to give patrol insight
Police in Shropshire will be giving a live insight into how officers patrol town centres this evening as part of a force-wide 'Twitterthon'.
Officers across Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin, Herefordshire and Worcestershire will use Twitter to give a running commentary on policing experience between 9pm and 6am tomorrow.
They will be joining police colleagues across the country in using social media aimed at raising awareness of alcohol and the impact it has on local communities.
Tweets will be under the hashtag #alcoholharm. Follow West Mercia Police’s force-wide account @wmerciapolice for more information about who will be tweeting in each local policing area on the night.
The nine-hour period over the Bank Holiday promises to be one of the busiest weekends of the year with extra police on duty in main centres to ensure people can enjoy a night out without fear of violence or disorder.
Assistant Chief Constable Gareth Morgan said: “We are making greater use of social media as a means of engaging with the public. We recognise it provides an effective and instant form of communication with local people.”
He said the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) was encouraging police forces nationwide to take part in the Twitterthon event following several successful tweeting sessions by individual senior officers in different parts of the country.
The Association highlighted Superintendent James Tozer, West Mercia’s Shropshire commander as one of those who used Twitter to good effect. He attracted widespread media coverage for a series of tweets while on duty in Shrewsbury town centre on New Year’s Eve.
