A former Keighley rugby league star has taken up a top post with the town’s police force.

Paul Dixon, who had two seasons with the Lawkholme club more than 20 years ago, is the new Superintendent Opera-tions with Airedale and North Bradford Police.

His father, Colin Dixon, was a Wales and Great Britain international rugby league player and became a director at Keighley.

Supt Dixon, 44, said building trust with communities and understanding neighbourhoods’ needs was an essential element of policing the town.

“My job is to ensure, first of all, we reduce crime and anti-social behaviour and increase the confidence of the public that we are doing a good job,” he said.

“We have got to make sure people are happy with our delivery. It’s about how quickly we respond and how good a service we provide.

“One thing a lot of people who report crimes have criticised is that they are not updated. We need to update them right through the judicial process. We are not as good as we should be sometimes at letting people have feedback.”

Supt Dixon said Neighbourhood Policing was central to the force’s ethos.

“It is about understanding what that neighbourhood wants and developing local priorities,” he added.

“I want an action plan and to work with partners to target the location, not just the offenders, but to build trust and relationships with the community.

“The public wants to see us on the streets and accessible. We need to be tough on crime but also support the victims, so people can live in harmony and enjoy a quality of life.”

He added several measures were being taken in the run-up to Christmas to help reduce crime. A ‘dark nights’ campaign is focussing on areas where burglaries occur most, targeting known offenders, staging high-visibility patrols and offering crime prevention advice.

Also, patrols are being stepped up in the town centre to clamp down on booze-fuelled anti-social behaviour.

Supt Dixon, who was born in Halifax and still lives in the town, has served in various roles within the police force – in uniform and CID – and latterly worked in counter terrorism for six years.

Other new appointments in the division include Chief Inspector Darren Williams, who is heading up Neighbour-hood Policing, and Chief Inspector Operations Tom Horner.