DUDLEY is one of the safest boroughs in the West Midlands, according to the Chief Superintendent Sally Bourner, the top cop for the area.

Visiting Stourbridge, Chief Superintendent Bourner was keen to stress that the number of violent crimes in Dudley is comparatively low in relation to its population.

However she acknowledged that people's perception of crime is greater due to a spate of high-profile crimes.

Ch Supt Bourner explained: "Dudley is really, really safe. There is an average of four incidents a month across the whole borough related to young people and knives. That is still four too many, but most people would think it's significantly more."

She added that Stourbridge and the surrounding area are the safest areas in the borough.

This is in spite of a number of violent car jackings and car key burglaries that have taken place in the town so far this year.

She said: "When we look at areas in the borough, Stourbridge and the surrounding areas are some of the safest areas of the borough. We recognise when there are small number of incidents that are significant, it can have a massive impact on the perception of crime."

Ch Supt Bourner stressed that police are focussed on tackling 'violent crime' and pointed to examples of car key burglaries and car jackings where victims have been threatened with machetes.

She also appealed to the public to get in touch with police about crime, no matter how seemingly small the information might be.

She said how many people share information on Facebook groups and Whatsapp, which the police do not check, so could be potentially missing vital information to solve crimes.

She added: "It all builds that intelligence picture which allows us to keep neighbourhoods safe. We need people to tell us, as the public are our eyes and ears."

The top cop for Dudley, who took on the role last summer, also confirmed that the former Citizens Advice Bureau building in Stourbridge is one of a range of options being considered as a police base in the town centre.

She said: "We are carefully exploring a range of options. Nothing has been signed yet. Any police base will not be open to the public, it will be a based for officers and PCSOs to work from.

"The public contact point will still be in Brierley Hill. The majority of people contact us online or via the phone."