CRIME-FIGHTING meetings have not been scrapped and will return, say police.

Since 2011, police have held small-scale conferences with residents of parts of Prestwich, Whitefield and Radcliffe under the banner of Police & Communities Together (Pact). Afterwards, officers draw up a list of the top-three priority issues and spend a month targeting them before providing an update at the next meeting.

The last Pact meeting was in January and there have been concerns that Bury South Police have scrapped them.

At a Prestwich Township Forum meeting on July 30, Cllr Jane Black said that officers had stopped holding the meetings temporarily while they considered how to get the best out of them.

This week, Insp Benjamin Cottam, who took up the post in February, told The Guide: “When I arrived in this role I was new to Pacts and wanted to spend a bit of time looking how at effective they are.

"There have been success stories and they do work but I am wary that attendance levels are often low.

"My officers tell me that at some points, only one person turns up and often it is the same person every time.

“We want PCs and PSCOs meeting people face to face but we do not want them to be tied up when there is only a few people there.”

To boost interest in the meetings in 2012, Radcliffe police launched the country’s first Twitter-only Pact.

Insp Cottam is considering starting three town-wide Pacts, for Radcliffe, Prestwich and Whitefield, on a trial basis.

He said there is potential for officers to meet people one on one or in small groups before forum meetings.