Superintendent Robinson had his first day on the job at the Bathurst Police Station on Tuesday saying police are already working well with the wider community in a city he believes is a growth centre.

He has already unpacked belongings after moving from Bourke.

Superinten-dent Robinson said “We’re here to stay.”

Superintendent Robinson is only 40 but has packed a lot into a 21 year career as a policeman. He worked his way through the ranks, from a constable to sergeant over 10 years at Dee Why in Sydney northern suburbs.

“I’ve also had two tours of duty out west, at Cobar and Walgett,” Superintendent Robinson said. “It was then back to Wollongong where I continued on as a detective, something that started in crime investigations at Dee Why.

“At Walgett I was the detective sergeant from 1998 and became crime manager while there working in an inspector’s position before moving to Wollongong as a chief inspector.”

Superintendent Robinson was duty officer at Wollongong until 2007 when he transferred to Bourke as Superintendent of Darling River Local Area Command. “Bourke is a big regional area, vast distances to travel with cultural issues. Bathurst is much more dynamic, something I’ve discovered observing from outside the command over the past few months.” Superintendent Robinson said his interest in knowing more about Bathurst increased when he knew he would take over the command some weeks ago.

“For the past few months Inspector Tony Hoolihan has been in command. I’ve been observing goings on in the district.

“It is more structured policing here - we have to make sure we keep on track ensuring community always comes first - but also making sure the community has confidence, knowing they can come to police at a higher level.

“Bathurst is also a gateway, we have a lot of people moving our way from the city to the western area.”

Since Superintendent Robinson arrived in Bathurst he’s met and spoken to numerous people “a little surprised with the strength of community support for police, all of which is positive.”

Superintendent Robinson knows it is early days for him saying he will not be “sitting in an ivory tower.”

“All of my career has been operational policing,” he said. “I will be taking an active interest in all areas of the command down to ground level in the community.”