POLICE officers for the Horsforth area are having to spend their time in other areas despite 'unacceptable' crime levels on the beat, angry councillors have claimed.

Three ward councillors claimed the community is losing out on valuable police presence hours to Otley and Weetwood, as the patrolling officers report back to stations outside Horsforth.

Councillors Brian Cleasby, Chris Townsley and Andy Barker (all Lib Dem, Horsforth) erupted in fury when shown recent crime figures for Horsforth, Aireborough and Otley at a recent police community forum meeting.

They claim the higher number of crimes in the Horsforth beat is a direct result of police officers being based outside the area.

And they claimed Otley's lower crime tally bears this out.

But police said Horsforth had suffered a blip in crime in recent months - and said it cannot be compared to Otley.

Councillor Cleasby said: "It's absolutely disgraceful.

"We are absolutely sick of the same situation year after year, where the figures for Horsforth are massive, and yet the figures are ridiculously low for other areas, such as Otley.

"We are just asking for parity."

In the period from April to September this year, there were 155 house burglaries on the Horsforth beat - compared to just 44 in the whole of Otley.

Yeadon and Rawdon also suffered 134 burglaries in the same period.

There were also 149 motor vehicle thefts in Horsforth compared to 41 in Otley, and 20 robberies compared to just six in Otley.

Coun Cleasby said: "Something is very wrong with the policing of our area.

"Otley has a police station. Officers can come off shift to go for a break, but stay within Otley, where their cars are seen.

"They say that the police at Weetwood are near enough, but unfortunately it isn't the same as having policemen in the area all the time."

The three councillors brought up the issue at a recent Horsforth, Aireborough and Otley Police Community Forum meeting held in Otley Civic Centre.

However, some residents at the forum argued that the police were not to blame, as Horsforth is closer to crime-hit inner city areas than Otley.

They said criminals from further afield could easily get into and out of Horsforth, as it lies on the Leeds ring road.

And some said city councillors should do more to alleviate social problems in Leeds, which may lead to more crime.

But Coun Townsley claims it is the turn of the police to take action.

Coun Townsley said: "We've been doing an awful lot.

"In fact we have been very successful in gaining four CCTV cameras for Horsforth.

"Now we're saying 'Let's have some police, please'.

"You can do your bit, now help us get our figures down."

And Coun Andy Barker welcomes the CCTV as an extra crime deterrent in Horsforth - but fears actual police presence may be taken away from the area.

Weetwood divisional commander, Supt Francis Habgood, said CCTV would be a useful tool, but would not replace any police officers.

He said that except for a recent spate, robberies were quite low in Horsforth, and appealed to residents to aid police by taking simple crime prevention measures.

He said simple things like keeping doors locked will help to beat sneak-in thieves.

Supt Habgood said he did not feel that officers being based a station outside of Horsforth was a significant issue, and said the Otley and Horsforth beats could not be compared.

"There are a lot of differences between Otley and Horsforth.

"Otley would probably be better compared with Wetherby.

"I recognise that there have been too many crimes, but we are doing everything we can.

"It's better to gave resources out on the street, when resources are limited," said Supt Habgood.

He said Horsforth would still have officers based at its police office.

l The next Horsforth, Airebo-rough and Otley Police Community Forum, which is open to the public, is expected to be held in Horsforth at a date to be confirmed.