Agenda item

Chief Inspector Steve Kendall provided an update to the meeting:

·  Neighbourhood teams are working with partners to meet the challenges in local areas. Cluster zones, Neighbourhood Sergeants and dedicated points of contact have been put in place to create a strong team that can deal when demands change.

·  The Police are facing financial challenges and are working with the PCC to look at the funding issues and staffing level for the longer term. Where there are lower levels of resources this does have an effect on how incidents are dealt with.

·  There has been an 8.4 per cent rise in reported crime across the Avon and Somerset force area - that figure is 8.2 per cent in B&NES. Calls for police assistance are up 8.8 per cent. 38,784 calls were made to police in B&NES last year; the force had seen a “considerable number of requests.”

·  Bath is generally a very safe place to live and work but there is a drugs issue in Bath as there is in every city across the country. Bath remains a safe place but the police service is facing significant challenges.

·  The City Centre Team is working alongside agencies on issues such as mental health, missing persons and homelessness issues.

Questions and responses:

1.  Cllr Dina Romero – Could you let us now about the levels of hate crimes locally?

Response - Hate crime has increased across the force as it has nationally...there’s no specific trend in B&NES. There is a strategy to deal with hate crime. The desire is to reduce it through education and other ways. There has been no reaction to hate crime being linked to the terrorist activity locally as seen in other places in the country.

2.  Cllr Dina Romero – Could you let us now about how the Police are working with people who suffer with mental health issues?

Response – 1 in 4 people suffer an episode of mental health during their life. The Police have been trained to recognise the signs and use care pathways as a method when people arrive in custody. This more compassionate approach has seen a reduction in the numbers of people with issues being processed through custody in the conventional way.

3.  Cllr Shaun Stephenson-McGall – The media has reported that the PCC has said that £1.1 million in savings has to be found, what will this look like and will this mean service cuts?

Response – The PCC has committed to projection of neighbourhood resources, the reductions need to be looked at the detail will need to be worked out. There is a PCC meeting in Bath next week where this question could be asked.

4.  Rosie Phillips – Six months ago action was taken on the open drugs market and organised crime, what has been the impact on the city?

Response – The team continues the fight on drug crime and activity does continue. The figures do show that drug offences are 56% down in the local area despite the increase in burglary offences. There is continued awareness around the issue of outsider’s coming into vulnerable communities and operating from their homes.

5.  Cllr Peter Turner – Although the public like to see the Police on patrol, what is the effect of technology such as CCTV and how is this helping the Police?

Response – There are areas where developments need to continue and this will require investment. 4G/WIFI has given officers greater ability to stay mobile and not have to return so often to the office. The internet has also brought fresh challenges in the way it is used to commit crime.

6.  Cllr Joe Rayment – After there have been Police raids do we see a reduction in the levels of drug trade on the street?

Response – Where leads are followed up and intelligence is gathered provides the public with the signal that the issues are being addressed. Where we do take dealers out of the chain they soon become replaced by someone new.  Bath does continue to remain a safe place to live.

7.  Leslie Redwood – Thank you for the service that you are providing. What has been the impact of the removal of a city centre operational base?

Response - The people of Bath and my colleagues would like to have kept that police presence and Manvers Street facility. The closure was duly part to finance and this was not possible.

Police patrols do remain in the city centre and a station of sorts off the Lower Bristol Road; if it were to be possible we would like somewhere closer to the city centre. Is it possible in the current financial climate? Who knows? We don’t have that facility that we once had and we do miss it.

8.  Member of the public – What is the position from the Police on homelessness?

Response – The police work with our partner agencies and look to protect the vulnerable. Some members of the street community have made a lifestyle choice.