As part of our looking back series, this article was published five years ago this week:

Sweeping cuts have been announced to policing in Epping Forest, with stations set to close and large numbers of police community support officers (PCSOs) set to lose jobs.

As it seeks to save £63 million by 2019-20, Essex Police has proposed to close and sell Epping station from April next year.

The front desk at Loughton station, currently open Monday to Saturday between midday and 6pm, will also be closed although it will remain an operational base for officers.

Ongar and Waltham Abbey stations, which both closed to the public in November 2011, will be sold.

The closures come as the force makes dramatic cutbacks across Essex as a whole, planning to sell 50 of 80 buildings and cutting front counters to only 10 from 25.

The closest desk for people in Epping Forest will now be at Harlow station, open between 9am to 5pm Monday to Sunday.

Across the shared area of Epping Forest and Brentwood, 19 of 26 PCSOs may be lost, potentially redeploying elsewhere or being made redundant.

A new ‘Community Policing Team’ will feature one inspector, two sergeants, 10 constables on youth officer and seven PCSOs.

The team will hold monthly public meetings, but ‘street meets’ – more regular and localised opportunities to meet with officers and discuss concerns – will stop.

Police research carried out over two separate months showed 381 people visited Epping’s front counter, with only six of those reporting a crime.

In Loughton, this figure was 20 out of 744.

The cuts were announced by Police and Crime Commisioner Nick Alston and Chief Constable Stephen Kavanagh this afternoon (October 6, 2015) in Chelmsford.