EXTRA police on the beat and new CCTV cameras have been promised to help make Dudley's streets safer as council chiefs trumpet the biggest investment in services for residents in a decade.

Councillor Patrick Harley, leader of Dudley Council, has announced the authority plans to invest £750,000 over three years to put 10 new officers on the borough's streets as the council celebrates having an extra £7.5million to spend in its 2020-21 budget and £1.7million on new state-of-the art cameras.

The plan to put extra police boots on the ground depends on match funding from West Midlands Police but council bosses say they are confident the force will approve the initiative.

Cllr Harley said: "I have made it a clear priority of my administration to improve the safety of our residents.

"One thing we are constantly told when we talk to people is that they don’t feel there is enough law enforcement on the streets to deter criminals.

"We are spending millions to breathe new life into our town centres – but people won’t visit them if they don’t feel safe.

"We are striving to make the borough a safer place to live in and visit.

"A strong, visible uniformed presence really helps towards that. This cash will help West Midlands Police put more boots on the ground patrolling our streets at the times when the public will see it and feel reassured. This is our commitment to making our streets safer for residents."

He and cabinet colleague Councillor Steve Clark want to see the money spent on PCSOs who could be allocated to patrol specific areas of the borough that would benefit from an increased police presence such as Stourbridge town centre on busy evenings and Lye High Street.

Cllr Clark, cabinet member for finance and legal services, said: "We can put them wherever we want them - if it's police officers we won't have a choice."

Cllr Harley also promised Lye would be among the priority areas for new CCTV cameras which are set to be installed by spring next year.

The new state-of-the-art digital cameras will be monitored from a new control base in Dudley.

Councillor Laura Taylor, cabinet member for community safety, said: "These new cameras are more sophisticated, provide more detailed images and when the roll out is complete they will provide greater coverage of our town centres and wider borough."

Mobile cameras will also be part of the mix and will be able to be moved to hotspot problem areas.

The budget proposals are set to go before cabinet next Thursday (October 31).

Cllr Harley described the spending plans as "bold statement" and he said he was delighted to announce "the biggest investment in services for Dudley borough residents in 10 years".

Along with the investment in policing and CCTV - are plans to pump extra cash into care for the elderly, leisure facilities, tree planting and maintenance plus extra bin collections.

A council tax rise of 3.99 per cent is also proposed to help bolster the spending plan but authority bosses say residents will still pay one of the lowest rates in the country and lower levels compared to other Black Country authorities.

The increase amounts to around 80p a week extra for a band B property.

Cllr Clark said: "We have thought long and hard about this and balanced it with the need to provide services people will be proud of."

He said the budget invests across the board and focusses on "fighting crime, helping young people and older people, the environment, health and much more".

Full details can be seen online at http://cmis.dudley.gov.uk.