NEW police sergeant Dave Garrod says he is looking forward to building on the good links Devizes police has with the community.

Sgt Garrod, 43, has taken over from Dave Bonner-Smith who has moved to police headquarters to take up a training role.

He has been with Wiltshire police for 13 years and has spent nearly all of that time working in Salisbury, except for two years when he was based at Amesbury.

Throughout his career he has been a uniformed response officer and was a relief observer on the police helicopter for two days a month for two years.

He said: "What I like about police work is that it is a constant challenge and there is so much variety. You never know what you are going to encounter on each working day."

He has been working in Devizes, based at the police station in New Park Street, for two months and said he has received a friendly response from local people.

"Devizes is a friendly market town and the people are supportive of the police," he said.

Before joining the force, Sgt Garrod was an aircraft technician in the Army.

He will be helping to oversee the introduction of two community support officers who will be working in the Devizes area from this summer.

The two officers will be supporting police officers by being out on the streets and cracking down on nuisance offences such as cycling on pavements.