RESIDENTS who live in the Northumbria Police area have been urged to have their say in the way their area is policed.

As part of the region's largest public consultation exercise, they will also be asked which crimes they think should be given a high priority by police officers.

More than half a million leaflets will be delivered to every home and business in Northumberland and Tyne and Wear during September, urging people to give their views.

The chairman of Northumbria Police Authority, Councillor George Gill, said: "I cannot stress too strongly how important it is for us to hear what the public has to say.

"Northumbria Police is already one of the most effective and efficient police forces in the country - as eight successive years of steadily falling crime ably demonstrates.

"No other police force has been able to match our performance and we are determined to continue giving the public what they want.

"To do so, we need to be sure that what we are proposing closely matches the concerns of the public."

The police authority has a statutory duty to consult the public before preparing an annual Best Value Performance Plan, which is published every April and outlines policing priorities for the year ahead.

Last year's consultation exercise attracted comments from more than 10,000 people.

From September 4, more than 620,000 leaflets will be delivered to homes and businesses, each containing a detailed questionnaire which can be returned free of charge.

Delivery of the leaflets will continue into October, with more than 20 public meetings being held right throughout the autumn until December.