One answer to stretched resources and budgets, and a leap forward in a practical use of the latest technology. BBC News reports:
The UK’s first ‘virtual’ police station is up and running, giving residents face-to-face access to a police officer 24 hours a day. The video link connects a kiosk in the foyer at Mumbles police station to the control room five miles away in Swansea. People can speak to – and see – police even when the station is unmanned. South Wales Police said the pilot was an additional resource and would not replace officers in the seaside resort.
As well as reporting crime, the kiosk also allows people to give details of lost property or pets, e-mail their community officer, check appeal information and retrieve useful numbers. The intra-web cam is being trialled over the next few months.
[…] Providers BT said it was the first time they had combined audio and visual links for use in a police station. Garry Clark, from BT, said they were constantly developing the technology for use by the emergency services across the UK. Other police forces were watching the experiment over the next few months carefully. Chief Constable Barbara Wilding added: "I fully recognise that many people find it difficult to attend a police station during office hours and find it inconvenient to travel to one of our larger stations."
BBC News | UK | ‘Virtual’ police station on line
If you could do this from home or office, with your own webcam, even better. Maybe that’s next.