Our ref: NW/LS
5 August 2011
Dear Parish/District/County Councillor/MP/NHW
Co-Ordinators
With the summer in full swing it seems an
opportune time to update you on policing in your local
communities.
Somerset East policing district has made some
very noteworthy achievements since I last wrote.
1. With input from our specialist
teams, our analytical capability and our
response/neighbourhood teams, working together with our
communities, we have recorded a reduction in overall
crime of 6.5% in the first 100 days of the current crime
year. This is the best reduction achievement by any BCU
in Avon and Somerset so far this year and means that
there have already been 323 fewer victims of crime when
compared to the same period last year.
2. In particular I am pleased to be
able to report that as a result of long term work from
our neighbourhood teams together with partner agencies
and in conjunction with local night time economy venues
violent crime is down almost 10% on the previous year
which has resulted in there being almost 100 fewer
victims of this crime type this year.
3. Also worth noting is this years
reduction in recorded criminal damage of 15% so far (160
fewer victims).
4. Our customer satisfaction
indicators continue to improve with improvements in the
overall satisfaction for our handling of crime improving
by 4.3% and ASB by 12.6% (from differing baseline start
points) during the last year.
5. As a result of our engagement work
within our communities the number of reported cases of
ASB has reduced by 22% since 1st April which means
862 fewer people have been affected so far this year.
However, there
are always areas and opportunities for improvement and one such
area this year is theft from motor vehicles (TFMV). Although the
overall longer term trend remains one of ongoing reduction TFMV
has increased when compared to last year. The district
analytical team is tasked with identifying individuals, hotspots
or local trends so that we can effectively target those
responsible to best effect. In addition our IMPACT team
continues to work with our highest profile nominals in order to
prevent and deter opportunities to offend. As you will be aware,
most of this crime is opportunist and is occasioned because
valuables have been left on view or the vehicle left insecure.
Once again I would ask that you help spread the message that
removing money and valuables from sight and locking your
vehicles are an effective deterrent against this sort of crime.
With the warm
weather upon us we have seen a recent spate of ‘walk in’
burglaries where opportunists have targeted a property having
noticed that doors and windows have been left open whilst the
owners are out in the garden. Since April 1 this year the
district has recorded 132 burglaries (just over one per day in
an area with more than 80,000 households). We would therefore
encourage people to take a common sense approach to household
security simple precautions such as securing doors and windows
that are ‘out of sight, out of mind’.
To bring the
above statistics alive I thought it would be helpful to give you
some examples of recent successes in reducing crime and
detecting the offenders in your local area. The increase in the
price of scrap metal has resulted in a number of crimes where
metal has been stolen. On 2 August 2011, an Operation was
conducted jointly with the British Transport Police in relation
to theft of metal cables in the South Somerset area. Three
offenders were arrested red handed and have been charged to
court.
On 3 August 2011, staff from the Frome
Neighbourhood policing area jointly with Road Policing officers
and VOSA conducted a crime reduction initiative at Standerwick
Market in Frome. During the Operation roadside checks were
conducted on vehicles transporting livestock and a number of
offences were detected and dealt with. The Operation gave
officers the chance to give out crime prevention advice and
“Shutting the gate on rural crime” literature.
In response to
community concerns regarding anti social driving behaviour
officers conducted an Operation on the District jointly with
District Council staff where vehicles were stopped and examined.
This enforcement action sent a positive message to those
previously engaged in anti social driving behaviour and has
resulted in a huge reduction in this type of behaviour.
In my last
letter I mentioned our Rural Crime Initiative. I am pleased to
report that the number of farms signing up to our Farmwatch
Initiative is continuing to increase. The officers involved in
this work are now working closely with local farmers and have
achieved some substantial successes in respect of rural crime.
This team has also been involved in investigating theft of metal
which has resulted in the successful arrest of offenders
stealing lead from one of the local schools in the Yeovil area.
We receive
valuable support and assistance from a thriving Special
Constabulary membership on the District. In the last few months
they have assisted us with numerous investigations and our
regular Relentless Operations. If there is anyone who is
interested in becoming a Special Constable or a Police Volunteer
there are a number of exciting opportunities in this area and I
would be happy for those interested to make contact with me.
We have recently
launched a new online consultation facility at 0community to
give us feedback regarding what works well and what needs to be
improved in relation to community safety in their area. This is
a real opportunity to influence decision making and make a real
difference in communities. Please can I ask you to publicise
this to the members of the community you come into contact with.
I would also
like to make you aware that from September 2011, Avon and
Somerset Constabulary will be changing from the 0845 456 7000
general enquiries telephone number to the National 101 non
emergency telephone number. In an emergency the public should
still call 999 such as when a crime is in progress, when there
is danger to life or when violence is being used or threatened
however, the new number should be used in all other situations.