A new borough commander has taken charge of Sutton police.

Chief Superintendent Dave Stringer, who moved over from Tower Hamlets last month, said his strategy would be based around community engagement.

Chief Supt Stringer, who has spent 21 of his 23 years of service in the Metropolitan Police working in neighbourhood policing, spent Monday morning out in the town centre speaking to locals.

He said: “One of the things I would like to consider very early on is the level of visibility we have in the town centre right through the day time.

“I am aware of the very successful policing operation we are running through the weekend for the night time economy, and one of the things I am looking at early on is we need to think about the level of visibility we have in the town.

“During the day there’s a lot of people who pass through it and I honestly think that anywhere that you have a high footfall, it’s really important to have a high level of policing visibility as well.”

Chief Supt Stringer was previously borough commander in Bexley for a year, followed by a three-year stint in Tower Hamlets.

He expressed his excitement about working in the “very clean, and very safe” borough of Sutton.

He said: “Sutton has been very successful in crime reduction, very successful in the reduction of antisocial behaviour.

“My aim is to maintain and further improve on what is already a very good picture, and actually in terms of the conversations I am having I am very reassured about how well people are working together, very reassured about commitment to continue what is a really successful partnership.”