People shopping in Mansfield are being encouraged to say hello to frontline police officers they see in their local coffee shops — and speak to them about any concerns — as part of a new pilot project.

Nottinghamshire Police is trialling the new initiative in the town. It will see response and neighbourhood officers working in town centre coffee chains.

A key aim of the scheme is to enable members of the public who see an officer in their coffee shop to chat to them in a relaxed, informal setting, if they have concerns or questions about a local policing matter, such as a reported incident, or if they need advice.

The trial scheme is being supported by the Costa Coffee shops on West Gate, Southwell Road, and St Peter’s Retail Park; Starbucks in the Four Seasons Shopping Centre; and Dunkin’ on Southwell Road West.

Sgt Josh Lee-Taylor, who works in Nottinghamshire Police’s Prevention Hub, which is driving the initiative forward, said: “Agile working is already well embedded within our organisation, allowing officers on duty to be flexible by working in different locations to complete their tasks.

“This pilot project is all about building on that, enabling officers to be even more visible, approachable, and accessible to members of the public by spending time working in public spaces, in this instance coffee shops, on an ad-hoc basis.

“We want it to be an informal process where people can come and say ‘hello’ to officers in a coffee shop and have a chat with them, helping to break down barriers and improve engagement with our local community.

“We don’t want it to be like a beat surgery. The idea behind this coffee chain pilot project is to make things more relaxed and fluid, as well as our officers’ presence being able to provide a visible deterrent to crime. ”

Inspector Kylie Davies, district commander for Mansfield, added: “It’s a way of reaching out to those people who don’t necessarily want to come to some of our more formal public events.”