Agenda item

To receive a verbal presentation from Hertfordshire Constabulary supported by the Community Protection Manager in respect of Crime and Disorder Issues.

Chief Inspector Sally Phillips, Hertfordshire Constabulary thanked the Chair for the opportunity to address the Committee and provided Members with a verbal presentation in respect of Crime and Disorder Matters including:

 

·                Policing during the pandemic;

·                Anti-social behaviour and crime during the pandemic;

·                Domestic abuse during the pandemic;

·                Introduction of Chief Inspector Jon Roche.

 

The Chair thanked Chief Inspector Phillips for her presentation.

 

Sarah Pateman, Survivors Against Domestic Abuse (SADA), thanked the Chair for the opportunity to address the Committee and provided Members with a PowerPoint presentation in respect of the work carried out by SADA and the support provided to survivors of domestic abuse during the pandemic.

 

The Chair thanked Ms Pateman for her presentation.

Audio recording 7 minutes 36 seconds

 

The Community Protection Manager introduced the former North Herts Chief Inspector Sally Phillips, Chief Inspector Jon Roche and Sarah Pateman, Chair of SADA, to present on the matters discussed at the previous Committee meeting.

 

Chief Inspector Sally Phillips, Hertfordshire Constabulary thanked the Chair for the opportunity to address the Committee and provided Members with a verbal presentation in respect of Crime and Disorder Matters within North Hertfordshire including:

 

Policing during the pandemic

 

·                Policing during the pandemic had been exceptionally challenging with the ever-changing situation of different tiers and lockdowns to police;

·                At the start of the pandemic a dedicated operational command was set up across the force to ensure service delivery remained safe for public and staff;

·                Dedicated patrols were set up in November to capture all the engagement and enforcement around Covid across each district;

·                Last week alone, 780 reports of Covid breaches were received;

·                Covid-related anti-social behaviour was dealt with positively, using the 4 Es process (Engage, Explain, Encourage, Enforce);

·                Reports of suspicious activity, e.g. drug dealing, had increased as people had the opportunity to see more as they were working from home.

 

Crime statistics for 2020

 

·                Drug supply and related serious violent crime remained a threat;

·                The end of 2020 saw a 4.1% decrease of all crime in North Herts which was one of the highest performing CSPs in the county;

·                The impact of Covid could be seen in the decrease in all crime across North Herts which was currently 17.4%, equating to around 1000 less crimes;

·                Demand in complex areas of vulnerability and mental health had increased;

·                North Herts had continued to see an increase in positive outcomes. This stood at 3.8% for traditional crime which was significantly above the force average;

·                The Scorpion Team and Local Crime Unit had focused on robust investigation of County Lines drug supply and related violence and weapons resulting in positive outcomes and criminal justice outcomes through the Courts;

·                They had also been working with counterparts in the Serious and Organised Crime team identifying organised crime groups and disrupting their behaviour, and carrying out preventative and protection work with the community to make North Herts a hostile place for that type of criminal activity to occur;

·                The pandemic had disrupted some youth-related anti-social behaviour in Letchworth and Royston but preventative work was ongoing to ensure these areas did not become hotspots again.

 

Domestic Abuse during the pandemic

 

·                The national increase in domestic abuse during the pandemic had been reflected locally;

·                Each month had seen a consistent increase in domestic abuse during the pandemic: September had seen the highest increase of 15.4%, December had an increase of 4.7%, and July had seen a slight decrease in comparison with the previous year;

·                Although domestic abuse had increased during the pandemic it was encouraging that people felt confident to report it;

·                North Herts had one of the highest outcome rates within the county for domestic abuse;

·                Part of the Community Safety Action Plan was to deliver the best possible response when domestic abuse had been reported;

·                The J9 initiative was being used working with community partners to support survivors of domestic abuse;

·                Virtual training focusing on ‘Voice of the Child’ had been delivered remotely;

·                A new instant victim referral app, We Protect, was being trialled in a number of CSPs in the south of the county and would be rolled out across the force to aid early invention;

·                A victim service scheme was being piloted which was focused around medium risk victims, engaging with them, providing better signposting, and putting safeguarding in place;

·                Perpetrator programmes were also being developed as part of an holistic approach.

 

Chief Inspector Phillips advised that, after two years of working at North Herts, she would be handing over to Chief Inspector Jon Roche as her successor.

 

The following Members asked questions:

 

·                Councillor David Levett;

·                Councillor Claire Strong;

·                Councillor Terry Hone.

 

Chief Inspector Phillips and Chief Inspector Roche responded to Members’ questions as follows:

 

·                The Police were actively managing car and motorcycle meets and vehicle anti-social behaviour in liaison with roads policing colleagues;

·                Members of the community were encouraged to report any instances of car/motorcycle meets and anti-social driving so that the Police could assess these for Covid breaches and other offences;

·                The majority of vehicle crime reported was unfortunately due to cars being left unlocked, this was especially common in rural areas. This was being addressed by messaging going out to remind people to lock their cars;

·                The Police were aware of professional motor vehicle thieves who occasionally came to North Herts to do a spate of opportunistic crimes, but then not return for a couple of months;

·                The recent spate of vehicle crime in Whitwell was under investigation and there was good intelligence on the potential perpetrator;

·                Regarding the loss of police records reported in the media, the force was awaiting notification of the precise nature of the loss from the Home Office and data would be fed back into the system where possible to rectify the issue.

 

The Chair thanked Chief Inspectors Phillips and Roche for their presentation.

 

Sarah Pateman, Survivors Against Domestic Abuse (SADA), thanked the Chair for the opportunity to address the Committee and provided Members with a PowerPoint presentation in respect of the work carried out by SADA and the support provided to survivors of domestic abuse during the pandemic.

 

Ms Pateman included the following information in her presentation:

 

·                Tania Stokes, Domestic Abuse Liaison Officer was not present but thanks were conveyed to her for the important work she did to support the service;

·                SADA was now launched in five areas across Hertfordshire;

·                North Hertfordshire was thanked for its support which had enabled the service to expand within the county;

·                The service had been publicised in the media and on social media;

·                White Ribbon accreditation had been obtained for the second year running;

·                Christmas gifts, trees, decorations and food parcels had been given out and a Virtual Christmas Grotto set up to enable the children to meet Father Christmas;

·                The Modern Slavery Service had been enhanced;

·                Safe space provision had been expanded from 2 to 20 properties;

·                SADA’s book Survivor Stories had been published on Amazon;

·                SADA had been working closely with partners such as Letchworth Foodbank;

·                Funding had been received from North Herts District Council (£20,000), Ministry of Housing (£82,000), and Letchworth Heritage Fund (£5,600);

·                Types of support during the first lockdown period included: security provided to help people remain in their homes, video doorbells, legal advice; refuge; move-on accommodation; local authority property applications; drop-ins; You, Me and Mum virtual course; referrals to Children’s Services; return home after refuge; other partner referrals; work with Housing Associations to manage moves rather than give up homes and help into private rental accommodation;

·                Training had been carried out with the Housing Association and frontline local authority staff;

·                In September 2018 government funding of £165,000 had been received for a second safe space in North Herts. This was used to secure a three-bedroomed house in Letchworth with a private landlord;

·                Free champion training was offered to all internal and external partners and agencies;

·                Domestic abuse awareness and safety planning training was also offered to all.

 

The following Member asked questions:

 

·                Councillor David Levett;

·                Councillor Clare Billing.

 

In response to the questions, Ms Pateman advised:

 

·                the funding from the Ministry of Housing had been used to fund the Safe Spaces rented accommodation and other funding was urgently being sought for the future;

·                the average length of occupancy of the Safe Spaces was 6 months to one year and had increased due to delays caused by the pandemic;

·                All SADA clients were given a mobile number they can use to text or call their support worker;

·                Various apps and code words were used and the service was always tailored to the individual.

 

Councillor Clare Billing thanked SADA for their valuable work in the community.

 

The Chair thanked Ms Pateman for her presentation.