MIDDLEWICH’S new PCSO says he is enjoying life in the town, having officially made his stay permanent.

PCSO Paul Hewitt took up the role in November following the departure of his predecessor Dave Jinks, but he was initially set for a switch to Macclesfield.

Now cemented in his Middlewich role, PCSO Hewitt is enjoying meeting residents and making progress on long-standing process.

Speaking to the Guardian at a multi-agency traffic enforcement drive this morning, PCSO Hewitt addressed a variety of issues including speeding, parking, antisocial behaviour, drugs, graffiti and dog fouling.

He said: “It’s going great – I’m trying my best to integrate into the community and sort these problems out. We held a community meeting [on Sunday] and that was good and quite interesting.

“We do have serious problems, and unfortunately with Middlewich it seems that one of the biggest problems is antisocial behaviour and youths are coming from Sandbach and Winsford.

“That seems one of the biggest problems, especially in the evenings we get a lot of calls from shop owners and people who can find them quite intimidating.

“We have also got a lot of drug problems unfortunately, and we are trying to solve them.”

Speeding – the focus of the traffic enforcement activity – is also a burning issue for PCSO Hewitt, who has identified a particular issue in Booth Lane and St Michael’s Way.

He told of a Booth Lane resident who was nearly hit by a speeder at the Cledford Lane junction, while cameras in St Michael’s Way caught 77 motorists speeding in two hours on Tuesday.

Parking is also being closely monitored, with issues resurfacing around Cledford Primary School despite the recent installation of double yellow lines.

PCSO Hewitt said: “There are still a lot of people parking where they shouldn’t. Unfortunately I can’t ticket them, but we are trying to move them on.

“A lot of people don’t seem to realise that they are causing this obstruction.”

One of the PCSO’s next engagements is to deliver an assembly at Middlewich High School in March.

He can be contacted by emailing paul.hewitt22219@cheshire.police.pnn.uk.