Never heard of the 2SMART Policing Pledge for Children and Young People? Well read on to find out more about the promises the police have made to everyone and what you can expect from your local officers.

We will...

1. Always treat you with respect and according to your individual needs and not embarrass you or be rude to you.
   
   
2. Give out information about your local police officers so you know who they are.
   
   
3. Make sure our police and community support officers will be there for you and that you can see them spending their time working hard in your area.
   
   
4. Ensure a local police officer calls you back within 24 hours if you ring or text them about an issue.
   
   
5. Aim to answer emergency calls (999) within 10 seconds and to do our best to be with you within 10 minutes if you are in a town and 20 minutes if you are in a place that is harder to get to (rural areas).
   
   
6. Aim to answer non-emergency calls (0300 333 4444) as quickly as possible and be with you within an hour if you are upset or frightened or if it is a local priority issue we are already aware of. Otherwise, we will arrange to see you within 48 hours at a time suitable to you.
   
   
7. Welcome you to public meetings as well as talking to you face to face in your area, town or school because we want to know what issues are important to you.
   
   
8. Give you regular monthly updates on our work and the progress we are making. We will also keep you up to date with crime levels in your area and general policing issues.
   
   
9. If you are a victim of crime we will ask you how often you want to be contacted about your case.
   
   
10. Get back to you within 24 hours if you report you are not happy with our service.

To find out who your local officers are, log on to www.essex.police.uk and use our postcode checker on the home page.