Agenda item

The scrutiny committee to receive a presentation of the Community Safety Manager.

The committee received a presentation of the Community Safety Manager. Identifying the four key priorities for the Partnership; serious violent crime, violence against women and girls, community wellbeing and reassure and inform. He highlighted key points to the committee:

Serious violent crime

·           The strength of the prevention work in relation to this priority would be tested as part of the review cycle.

·           A group of 13-15 year-olds who had been responsible for a number of criminal incidents from bullying to robbery and threats to families had been apprehended and were in the criminal justice system.  There were some very serious behaviours demonstrated and as such the strongest penalties, including Criminal Behaviour Orders to restrict their access to the town, had been recommended.

Violence against women and girls

·           This had been targeted due to changing trends in the area.

·           While the Safer Streets bid had been unsuccessful, a number of smaller projects would be delivered to address the issue. These included environmental improvements in alleyways and other areas to improve safety as well as addressing unacceptable behaviours in the male community.

·           There had been extensive consultation with some new groups which had proved fruitful in understanding risks and threats.

Community wellbeing

·           This work was designed to match community tensions and involved positive presence of partners at community events where there was a hotspot in reporting.

·           Watford Community Housing were assisting in identifying very specific areas where an increased presence would be valued and provide reassurance. 

Reassure and inform

·           This priority was around public engagement by all partners.

·           The multi-agency approach was effective at dealing with issues and was the biggest partnership in the county.

·           While crime rates had increased this year due to the earlier impact of Covid on figures, it was in line with predictions and had fallen since the New Year. The figures involved were small. 

·           Antisocial behaviour was below last year’s levels and remained flat. Early intervention by partners had prevented issues becoming reports to the police or council and this was gratifying to see.

The Community Safety Manager further advised that a protocol was being developed to use the civil enforcement officers to promote safety. Along with Watford Community Housing, park and car park staff, they would be alerted to details of missing persons who were at risk of harm in Watford.

Referring to the mismatch between crime levels and perceptions of safety, the officer underlined the importance of reporting issues and using the online Echo systems. If residents were not satisfied that they had received a proportional response, they could make use of the Community Trigger. A thorough investigation would be made by the Community Safety Manager followed by an independent panel to assess the response. These often led to new suggestions for addressing issues.

Discussing reporting on behalf of residents, councillors were encouraged to report if the resident was not able to do so themselves. Reporting on behalf of a vulnerable resident could identify a potential safeguarding need. Reports were reviewed weekly and if councillors reported on behalf of residents this was taken seriously. When reporting online, councillors could note that they were reporting on behalf of others.

Responding to a query about a particular issue in Holywell, the Community Safety Manager recognised the problem noting that he did not think fake CCTV cameras were an effective deterrent. 

The committee discussed concerns around the targeting of the homes of Asian families for theft of jewellery.  The issue was not reflected in the data and more reporting was needed to ensure it was given priority through the Echo system. The police should be providing advice around prevention and what to do if a household was targeted. 

Police numbers were rarely at full strength due to the impact of the wider operations, training and illness. The Community Safety Partnership (CSP) were working for Watford to be allocated more police officers, as the town had the biggest footfall in Hertfordshire. A needs-based approach would benefit police numbers in the town and this was being considered by the Police and Crime Commissioner. 

Councillors reported an increase in complaints about antisocial behaviour and other issues in Cassiobury Park. The approach was to disperse these groups who were causing a nuisance; the courts were rarely keen to put in stringent measures. Enforcement action against vulnerable people was also difficult. The issues were not ignored and work with partners was vital.

Referring to reports of an incident of an individual who was in possession of a knife in the town centre, it was confirmed that one person was involved and the injuries were not life-threatening. The individual was not known in the town and had badly misjudged the situation. 

Members were of the view that a strategic approach was needed to address issues such as drug-dealing. This message was being underlined to the PCC and the CSP were delivering an effective response and identifying gaps in provision. New police officers were working in Watford but required a training process.

Hertfordshire was a very safe county for crime and other areas were seeing a rise in risks and threats which were known to Watford. The Portfolio Holder underlined that the CSP worked hard to protect residents and there was confidence that the approach was the most effective.

RESOLVED –

that the update be noted.