Lost property may soon be taken in at Biddulph Town Hall, after a decision by police to withdraw the service was branded a “poor show”.
Until recently, items that had been lost could be picked up from Longton Police Station, one of the few in the region with a public-facing reception desk.
But after it was revealed at Biddulph’s annual town meeting earlier this month that the service was no longer offered by Staffordshire Police, council officers agreed to look into moving the service closer to home.
At a meeting of the council’s Town and Community Committee last Tuesday, Independent Coun John Jones said: “This is yet another service that the police are withdrawing.
“Back in the day, if you were away for a couple of weeks you could ask them to keep an eye on your property. All of that sort of stuff has gone.
“The police do a cracking job, but this is another example of where we have to fill a gap. It is a poor show, quite frankly.”
Labour Coun Kevin Jackson said: “We have got the capacity at the town hall, as far as staff are concerned. Although it is something that the police no longer do, I think it is something that is probably still needed.
“If someone had lost their car keys, they wouldn’t be able to drive to Longton to see if they were there anyway.”
Independent Coun Dave Hawley said: “While I understand that people need somewhere in Biddulph where they can see if anything has been handed in, we need to investigate the legal responsibilities related to this.
“I think it could be a bit of a minefield, if we’re not careful.”
It was decided that discussions with the police would continue over moving the service to Biddulph as an agreemwent is reviewed.
