VASHTI Pearce, a police community management officer, briefed the Bude Community Network Panel on her role and how it could benefit the town, at the recent community network panel meeting on January 9.

Ms Pearce, who has worked for the police for 35 years, spending many years as a traffic warden in Plymouth — a challenging role indeed, the meeting heard — was keen to explain how her services could be of assistance to Bude.

She said: “It was quite a challenge to go from being a traffic warden in Plymouth, to come here and see how things are different.”

Ms Pearce joked about how she has had to wrap up in a few layers of clothing every time she leaves Plymouth to go to Delabole, where she has worked recently.

She explained that everything seems to be based in Truro, St Austell and Bodmin, which drove her work to focus more on smaller areas in Cornwall.

The meeting heard that towns, such as Callington, have had their services ‘severed’, and that Ms Pearce aims to get ‘the right people dealing with the right places’.

Another example of her work in the area has been with Delabole’s ongoing traffic issues, having enforced parking restrictions in the village with the help of their Cornwall County Councillor, Dominic Fairman.

Ms Pearce said: “What I recognised that I needed to do was to build a trust and relationship with the local community. For example, Delabole has a fire station at the bottom of the road, at Pengelly, and there have been instances when they have been unable to get out. It’s all about the need to address issues in the area.

“Yellow lines have now been put down in Delabole, and a robust enforcement is now in place, to stop vehicles from parking in inappropriate areas.”

Ms Pearce finalised her presentation, and was met with a warm round of applause by the Network Panel and public — a positive sign indeed.

Ms Pearce said: “I would love to come to Bude — find out about the issues in your area, and see if there’s anything we can do differently. I hope we can work together.”