On Thursday last week, a dozen police officers gathered on Barrhead Main Street for a “street briefing”.

Normally held in chair-filled rooms in the heart of the local station, this event was as much a show of force as it was a brief insight into what goes on behind the scenes in policing the town.

A sergeant led the briefing, while Chief Inspector Angela Carty watched on — this was the public manifestation of her priorities; drugs, anti-social behaviour and community engagement.

Less than a week before she was interviewed by the Barrhead News, where she revealed her extensive experience as a frontline officer, and shared her strong opinions on just what community policing should be.

Speaking in Giffnock Police Station, the area HQ, Inspector Carty said: “I have more than 26 year experience in the force, and I started my career in Govan.

“I worked there a number of years but also worked in Pollok, Gorbals, Saltcoats and I was a sergeant in Ayshire, before coming back to Glasgow as an inspector.

“I’ve always been a uniformed officer and I don’t have experience in CID, that’s the path I have taken and enjoy most.” Working in some of the most reputably rough areas in Glasgow, Angela has held dozens of positions in her time serving as a frontline officer.

She has been a community officer and sergeant, a response sergeant, a response officer, a community police inspector — all operational roles working on the frontline on the streets.

And Angela admits that she won’t be an inspector confined to her desk, saying: “Sometimes I will want to get out there on the ground myself — I think it’s right that people know who I am and who is in charge of the police in their area.” However Angela is not here to enact sweeping changes, instead she hopes to develop existing groundwork left behind by her predecessor Inspector Campbell Crawford She said: “I have to say that the situation as left in rude health by my predecessor, the relationship we have with the community, the local authority and the community councils is a good relationship.

“The crime figures have been particularly good over the last few years and obviously when you come in you come with fresh ideas and things that you would want to do.

“I’m not going to make huge changes, gradual changes as we go, especially at a street level where we will be doing more in the eye of the public like the street briefings — which might come as a bit of a shock to the sergeants.

“It’s good to get out in the community, to say ‘we are here, come and speak to us’ and our officers are already out in the community and you see that people are happy to stop and have a chat.

“Sweeping changes, no, but obviously we will put our mark on things.

“There is no point in change for the sake of change but sometimes you have to go and freshen things up a wee bit that will make that bit of a difference.” The priorities for the area will remain unchanged, as they are not left to the hands of the area commander. However how the constabulary take on these priorities and get results is where Angela hopes to make her mark.

Anti-social behaviour and drugs remain top of the hit-list.

Angela added: “Reported crime as a whole is down by 24 per cent while reports of anti-social behaviour are also down but this does not mean that we won’t be placing it as high on the list of priorities as before.

“This is on the back of big falls last year.” One of the main issues from recent months in Barrhead has been the ongoing anti-social behaviour on Barrhead Main Street, however Angela explained that the force now has two dedicated officers to patrol the Main Street at peak times.

She said: “We will make sure that two officers are there and visible at peak times when the shops are open to re-assure people and deter any anti-social behaviour.

“Thy are there for the re-assurance and as a preventative measure.” In next week’s edition of the Barrhead News we will look at how the force in Barrhead is tackling the nationally recognised issue of domestic violence.