THE chief constable of West Mercia Police wants to hear the views of the public in a web chat next week.

Chief Constable David Shaw will take part in a web chat next week to answer a wide range of questions on aspects of policing across Herefordshire, Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin and Worcestershire.

The event will take place on Thursday (November 6) from 6.30pm and those who wish to take part can log onto www.westmercia.police.uk/webchat/ Chief Constable David Shaw said: "It is a very important part of my job that I can speak personally with people that I serve. Web chats have become a very useful way of doing this and I look forward to speaking to people from across West Mercia and all our communities.

Being held to account by the people that provide the money for policing and that we have the responsibility of keeping safe is very important to me and I look forward to your calls".

People who are not able to go online can leave their questions for the Chief in advance on the force Facebook page or on Twitter (@westmerciapolice). You can also read a transcript of the web chat after the event via the force website.

Mr Shaw will try to answer as many questions as time allows or follow them up afterwards. He will not, however, be able to answer questions about specific crimes or ongoing court cases but will ensure any queries received are passed on to the appropriate policing unit. Ahead of the event, you can also log onto www.westmercia.police.uk/webchat/ to sign up for a reminder email.