MAIDSTONE town centre is a safe place to be on Friday and Saturday nights, according to the town's Bishop.

The Rt Rev Graham Cray praised the quality of night-time policing in the town centre after spending an evening with police officers and thousands of revellers.

The walkabout, also attended by Maidstone Borough Council deputy chief executive Trevor Gasson, was set up after several people living outside the town centre voiced concerns to the Bishop about coming in to Maidstone at night .

But Bishop Cray was reassured by what he saw. He said: "It was excellent and really informative. The impression I get is that the CCTV in particular is working so well that Maidstone is actually reasonably quiet.

"I came away very impressed. Maidstone is really very safe."

The pair spent four hours with patrol Insp Antony Wallis and officers from the tactical team attending incidents and walking the streets. They also visited the force's call centre at the Sutton Road police headquarters and the CCTV control room beneath the town hall in the High Street.

Insp Wallis said: "My perception was that both men were reassured by what they saw. Despite having between 12,000 and 14,000 people in the town on a Friday and Saturday night it really is a safe place to be."