Agenda item

Quarterly Crime Report December 2020

Report of the Director of Strategy and Partnerships

 

Minutes:

Members received the quarterly Community Safety update which provided the latest position on Harrow’s priority crime areas, as agreed with the Mayor’s Office for Crime and Policing (MOPAC).  The Committee welcomed the Portfolio Holder for Community Cohesion and Crime and Acting Chief Inspector Ed Baildon, Neighbourhood Partnerships, to the meeting.

 

The Director of Strategy and Partnerships introduced the report and explained that all Community Safety Partnerships were required by law to conduct an annual assessment of crime, disorder and anti-social behaviour within the borough and that this was known as the Strategic Assessment.  The capacity to complete the Assessment had been significantly impacted by the pandemic.  The Portfolio Holder then provided Members with some background to the report and figures and advised that Harrow continued to have the second lowest crime figures in London.  He encouraged Members to attend the Safer Neighbourhood Panel meetings and welcomed community led intelligence via social media such as whatsapp groups.

 

In terms of community safety, a Member commented that year on year Harrow appeared to have lower figures in terms of crime and suggested that whilst this may be a result of the pandemic, there might be lessons that could be learned.  The Director of Strategy and Partnerships stated that this year had been a unique set of circumstances and that there was a correlation between economic factors and crime.  Acting Chief Inspector Baildon added that burglars were opportunistic and with more people staying at home such opportunities were reduced.  As the country returned to normal it was likely that crime figures would increase.

 

Members made comments and asked a number of questions including the following:-

 

·                     it would be useful to be provided with information in relation to the reporting of domestic violence as it had been well documented that there had been a rise in this crime during the pandemic.  An officer explained how these figures were reported in terms of comparison with the previous year and undertook to provide further information via his contacts within the BCU;

 

·                     tags were appearing outside houses and the Member questioned whether residents should be alerted.  Acting Chief Inspector Baildon advised that he would speak to the relevant Safer Neighbourhood Team to send out alerts via OWL;

 

·                     concern was expressed at the levels of victim satisfaction with the police and Members were advised that this matter would be considered alongside the Mayor of London’s recently released Plan.  An officer undertook to follow this up and to provide Members with details on satisfaction rates;

 

·                     a Member stated that a reduced visible police presence in some neighbourhoods was a cause of concern to residents.  Acting Chief Inspector Baildon advised that there were now more dedicated ward officers than there had been at the beginning of the year and he sought to reassure Members that the turnover of police constables was due to an influx of officers.  The Portfolio Holder advised that whilst the Council was working to build good relationships with police teams this was difficult as teams were regularly moved around.  This had been raised at London Councils and with the Deputy Mayor for Policing to see if staff could be more permanent.

 

·                     a Member expressed concern in relation to MOPAC and violence reduction work in schools and questioned whether initiatives had had to be changed due to the closure of schools, the impact assessed and the impact on funding in future years.  The Acting Chief Inspector reported that the youth engagement team was fully funded and that work in primary schools continued to be delivered.  The Director added that funding was guaranteed this year.

 

·                     following a question from the Chair in relation to the impact of Low Traffic Neighbourhood Schemes on police response times, Acting Chief Inspector Baildon advised that response teams had not noticed an impact and that Harrow was in line with the rest of the BCU but he acknowledged that there was always room for improvement.

 

The Chair thanked the Portfolio Holder, Acting Chief Inspector Baildon and officers for their attendance and participation in what had been a useful debate.  He noted that there were a number of actions in terms of requests for further information/ data.

 

RESOLVED:  That the report be noted and the Committee’s comments feed into the forthcoming review and update of the Community Safety Violence, Vulnerability and Exploitation strategy and action plan.

Supporting documents: