WEST Mercia Police has paused a consultation into plans which would see front desk opening hours at its Redditch station cut.

Earlier this week, the force launched a survey inviting members of the community to share their views on its front counter services across Worcestershire, Herefordshire and Shropshire.

However, the survey has now been temporarily withdrawn so that revisions can be made following "feedback from stakeholders as part of that consultation process."

After the withdrawal of the survey, assistant chief constable Rachel Jones said: “It really important to us that we hear directly from our communities on proposed service changes, so we are able to make informed decisions.

“As part of the consultation process, we are also listening to the views of stakeholders and partners including the Police and Crime Commissioner, and are taking their views and concerns into consideration.

“We know the ways in which our communities contact and engage with us has changed, with more people using the phone or digital channels and reductions in people physically coming to police buildings.

“We need to ensure we adapt to public need accordingly and are therefore looking at a number of proposals and mechanisms to ensure we meet the differing needs of our diverse communities.

“I want to reassure people, that the current proposal would see the force retain all six of its front counters with only a slight reduction in opening hours.

"It does not propose to change the services provided by front counter staff, or police officer numbers within the community.”

The stations affected includes Shrewsbury, Hereford, Telford, Worcester, Redditch and Kidderminster.