Connection to community is the main focus for the Mid North Coast Police District's newly appointed Crime Prevention Officer.
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Senior Constable Tim Preston has been a police officer in Port Macquarie for the past 11 years. He was stationed in Kempsey for two years before that and also worked in Walgett and Surry Hills.
"I have been with the Mid North Coast Police District for almost 15 years now," he said.
"I spent most of my time in general duties. Doing domestics and working all over the place."
Senior Constable Preston has previously taken on the role of Crime Prevention Officer in Surry Hills and Walgett.
He said working with the community is what he enjoys most about the role.
"I've always wanted to work with the community. I enjoy working with the community and finding different strategies to prevent crime," he said.
"I will be looking at what we can do in the community to tackle different problems. The role involves getting community groups to work closer together and being a conduit to bringing groups together to work on ideas and strategies to reduce crime.
"Working behind the scenes to get things going in the right direction for the police is also part of the role."
Senior Constable Preston said his main aim is to be proactive to crime instead of reactive.
"Trying to get those strategies in place before crime gets to a point where things are out of control is the focus," he said.
"We need to be fluid with what we're doing and we need to be able to have the ability to look at what our biggest crime issue is at the time."
The role also includes visiting and liaising with community groups and residents.
"I guess it's the warm and fuzzy side of policing to a degree. People do come up and talk to us and ask questions," Senior Constable Preston said.
"The first part of the job will be liaising with the community to find out their biggest concerns and then working on addressing these issues.
"In the role I will be out on the streets and going around assisting with operations and interacting with the community."
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