THERE’S a new bobby on the beat in Irvine and Kilwinning.

Inspector Jim McMillan took up the post of Community Policing Inspector for the area - which also includes Dreghorn and Springside, at the start of June.

Inspector McMillan has hit the ground running and says he believes that local communities are key to tackling crime and he is determined to take action on the issues identified by local people.

On Friday, June 26, Inspector McMillan deployed additional officers into the area who were supported by colleagues from the Mounted Branch and North Ayrshire Council to target issues including antisocial behaviour, violent crime and drug misuse.

Inspector McMillan said: “For over a year I have been working as a response policing Inspector in Irvine and I am now looking forward to building on the work of my predecessor in working closely with communities to tackle crime and antisocial behaviour.

“We have deployed additional officers on high visibility and plain clothes patrols in Irvine and Kilwinning to raise awareness on our work and reassure local people that we are working to make communities safer.

“Since taking up the post I have met with members of the local community, elected members and representatives from our partner agencies to discuss local concerns and I look forward to working together to keep people safe.” On Friday officers deployed at a road safety checkpoint seized a vehicle which had allegedly been driven by a man without a valid licence or policy of insurance. At the same time 26 bail curfew checks were conducted to ensure offenders released on bail from court were complying with the conditions of their release – two people were allegedly found to be breaching the conditions and have been reported to the Procurator Fiscal.

Officers also conducted 43 visits to licensed premises in the area a number of which were conducted with partners including Trading Standards and the local Licensing Standards Officer.

Inspector McMillan has 14 years police service and has worked in a variety of policing roles including response policing, anti social behaviour liaison and a period with the Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland (ACPOS).

To contact your local community policing team call 101 (always dial 999 in an emergency) or visit the ‘Your Community’ pages of the Police Scotland web-site at www.scotland.police.uk