Agenda item

The Community Safety Manager delivered an update on the progress of the North Worcestershire Community Safety Partnership (NWCSP) report to the Board.

At its Planningmeeting inFebruary 2024,the NWCSPreviewed andagreed its new priorities for the following three-year period.The Partnership Plan set out the priorities that the CSP would focus on for a 3-year period, with an annual refresh to capture any emerging issues and trends. The NWCSP priorities for period April 2024 to March 2027 were:-

•              Public Place Violence& theSerious Violence Duty

•              ASB, Nuisance andEnvironmental Issues

•              Shopliftingand NeighbourhoodCrime: NeighbourhoodCrime isdefined as domestic burglary, robbery(against the individual/household), theft from a person and vehicle crime.

•              ProtectingVulnerable Communitiesincluding HateCrime &Targeted Harassment, Domestic Abuse & DHRs and Sexual Violence

•              Serious Organised Crime viaa JointAction Group(SOCJAG)

Alongside the local priorities, NWCSP worked closely with South Worcestershire CSP, through the countywide Safer Communities Board (SCB), to identify and address countywide issues. Through Worcestershire SCB, the two statutory CSPs collaborated on key countywide projects and initiatives to ensure District area input and delivery were considered and implemented.These Worcestershire-wideactivities andinterventions included:-

•      Domestic Abuse Partnership Board

•      Prevent Strategy Group[Counter Terrorism]

•      Protect (& Prepare)Board [CounterTerrorism]

•      SafeguardingChildren Partnership& GETSAFE[Child Exploitation]

•      Adult Safeguarding Partnership& AdultExploitation Group

•      Reducing Reoffending Group& IntegratedOffender Management

•      SubstanceMisuse OversightGroup /Combatting DrugsPartnership

In 2023-24 new funding was made available by the Home Office via the West Mercia Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) to support Community Safety partners in Implementing the Serious Violence Duty. Home Office funding allocations for SVD interventions in Worcestershire totalled £50k.

Alongside the PCC’s force-wide commissioning, NWCSP was allocated an annualring-fenced amountfrom thePCC of£139,250k toidentify andaddress local issuesat aDistrict level.  In additionto theannual ring-fencedgrant, thePCC alsoallocated additional Safer Communities funding to NWCSP. The funding was allocated by the Partnership to complement the ring-fenced grant and address identified issuesthat wereof mostconcern and/orare havinga detrimentaleffect on local communities.

During consideration of the item, Members raised the following:

• A Member detailed to the Board a legal dispute which had arisen in their local ward area, whereby a resident had been advised that the issue was deemed as a private matter and advised to seek legal advice.  The Council’s Community Safety Officer offered invaluable assistance and advice, which avoided the cost of seeking legal advice from a Solicitor.  It was requested that Members be provided with the necessary Antisocial Behaviour (ASB) tools, powers and relevant Officer contact details to assist their local community more effectively.  – The Community Safety Manager responded that relevant support could be arranged and was subsequently agreed as an action.
• In the report it was suggested that there had been a decrease in shoplifting within the District between the period of 2023-2024.  However, after consideration, Members expressed the view that shoplifting remained a concern in their local ward area and suggested that the crimes were not being adequately reported.  Members felt it would be helpful if the Council provided support to local businesses to encourage sufficient reporting on matters in the local area and if shoplifting incidences were reported that the crimes be investigated. – It was noted that shoplifting was a significant issue locally and underreported, however, there had been successes with collaborative business partnership working around the Town Centre areas.  Members were also advised of the Hotspot Patrols initiative where two areas of Bromsgrove had been identified as suffering from high levels of serious violence and ASB.  Since the project went live on 1^st June 2024, 595 pro-active patrols had been completed at the relevant times to increase visibility within the Town Centre.
• The Board also queried how the Council determined which areas to prioritise in the local area. – Members noted that data was sought following requests for service and responses to calls from community members.
• A Member informed the Board of a shop theft incident which had taken place in the Rubery area.  A response was provided by The Bromsgrove Centres Manager and advised that the DISC Scheme could assist further with the incident.  It was requested that an update be provided. - It was agreed this would be reported to the relevant team as an action.
• The Redeployable Camera Scheme was discussed, and it was requested that Members be provided with the specific locations of the deployments across the district areas.  Also, if successful, Members queried if the Council would consider the scheme on a permanent basis. – It was advised that requests should be raised with the Safer Neighbourhood Team (SNT), allowing the Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV)Monitoring Centre to have relevant discussions regarding Code of Practicelegal requirements for surveillance.  It was agreed that contact details would be provided to Members as an action.
• The Annual White Ribbon Domestic Abuse Campaign was discussed by Members.  A motion had previously been passed to seek formal accreditation of the scheme; Members requested that details be provided on the progress of the scheme. – It was advised that accreditation was a very time-consuming process at a time when the team was at reduced capacity, however a vacant post within the teamwould be appointed and this couldassist with progressing the matter further in the future.  
• A joy riding incident was discussed by a Member which had been raised within their ward area.  The SNT was subsequently contacted regarding the incident, and it was disappointing to note that the incident had been considered unsafe andthey were unable to assist further.  It was queried if the CSP had dealt with similar matters in tackling ways to reduce the issue within other areas of the District? – It was noted that theSNTs had a wealth of knowledge in tackling joy riding and wasa somewhat surprising response.  It was agreed that the matter would be discussed with theSNT Inspector as an action.  The Leader of the Council added that Inspector Richard Field from the West Mercia Police had dealt with a similar incident within the District and had worked proactively to address the issues raised.  Members were encouraged to report the relevant crimes to Inspector Richard Field to ensure that the reporting was followed up with an action plan.
• The Chairman of the Board expressed disappointment that a representative from West Mercia Police was not present for the meeting and felt that specific questions raised had been relevant to the Policefor their comment and input.  The Chairman also advised the Board of continuing issues with Graffiti within his ward andat St Chads Park, which was having a detrimental effect to the reputation of the area. – It was agreed that the matter would be discussed further with the SNTas an action to follow.
• The Leader of the Council asked thatissues experienced when reporting a crime in the local area be notified to the PCC and requested further clarity on the specific Forceboundary areas and West Mercia’s areas of responsibility. – It was advised that it was a specific policing matter and that the query might be better routed through the West Mercia Police and Crime Panel so that the PCC can be tasked to ensure the Police Control Centre are directing calls for service appropriately as part of their call taking role.

RESOLVED that the progress made by North Worcestershire Community Safety Partnership (NWCSP) be noted.</AI3>

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