Medway Council has been criticised for producing a booklet on safety, which cost more than £12,000.

Your Guide to Staying Safe in Medway was produced by Medway Council and distributed to homes in the area.

But Lib Dem group deputy leader Cllr Andy Stamp said police in Medway have just sent out a similar document, which included contact details for neighbourhood policing teams.

Cllr Stamp said: “This booklet might have been a good idea except for the fact police have just distributed contact details for neighbourhood police teams at a significant cost to the taxpayer.

“We are meant to be working in partnership with the police. Shouldn’t the council have sent out this communication jointly with them?”

Cllr Stamp says he is also not impressed with the document.

He added “The size is excessive for a document of about 1500 words, it is a 16 page document including several full page photographs and pictures.

“At a time when we are going to be asked to pay an inflation busting council tax rise, we should not be wasting more than £12,000 plus a lot of staff time producing a document which only gives a number for the council’s Customer First service, which is 333333.”

Cllr Reh Chishti portfolio holder for community safety and enforcement, hit back at Cllr Stamp.

He said: “I fully support this guide to staying safe in Medway.It is only through working with and informing residents about the services we provide that we can improve Medway’s communities and combat important issues such as anti-social behaviour and graffiti.

“This can only be done by making people aware of how to access our excellent services."