POLICE are back on the streets of Witham after three volunteer police officers took up new roles as bosses seek to reassure residents.

Residents have been calling for a visible police presence in the town since the closure of the police station in Newland Street more than two years ago.

And now Witham Town Council has become the first in the county to have its very own volunteer police officers, known as special constables.

At a launch event for the officers, bosses were eager to stress the part-time officers have the exact same powers as full-time officers.

Simon Anslow, the head of specials constabulary for Essex Police, said: “The name special constables means some people might think that they are the same as PCSOs but they have exactly the same powers as any other police officer, the only difference is that they are working voluntarily.

“We’re very pleased to have a visible police presence in Witham again - our three officers have been working in the area for a while as part of Operation Parachute so they know the town and the issues.”

The three officers are Special Sargeant Jason Wintin and Special Constables Lorne Campbell and Simon Jesse.

The town council will cover their expenses - which are expected to be in the region of £1,000 each per year - and they will begin working in the town council area immediately.

Their focus willl be on patrolling and responding to incidents in the town.

Councillors agreed unanimously to go ahead with the plan after being approached by Essex Police and hope in the future Witham will have up to five volunteer officers.

Thomas Pleasance, town mayor, said: “It’s very good news to have actual police on the streets again and we know them and they know us so we can talk to them about the issues we’re having.

“It means if there is a scuffle at a pub or something they can be on the scene to stop things getting out of hand.”

The officers will carry out a minimum of 16 hours of duty each month but many of Essex Police’s existing specials work for closer to 45 hours.