Agenda item

Officers from Leicestershire Constabulary will be present to discuss policing issues in the Westcotes Ward.

Inspector Bill Knopp introduced himself to the meeting, explaining that officers from the Neighbourhood Beat Team apologised for not being at the meeting, but they were involved in a search for a missing person.  Inspector Knopp advised:-

·            There had been 14 incidents of anti-social behaviour in the Ward during last month.  Although there was no obvious pattern to these, it was twice as many incidents as had been experienced in the same month last year;

·            The number of burglaries had increased to 41 in the last three months.  A group of people recently had been arrested who it was believed were responsible for some of these;

·            There was a long-term burglary problem in the Westcotes area.  Rates were decreasing across the City, but they were not decreasing in Westcotes as quickly as in other areas, which meant that burglary rates were high here compared to other parts of the City.  Some of this was due to the high transient population and the type of property, but some was drug-related; and

·            Theft from motor vehicles also had increased in the Ward.  This was mostly the theft of registration plates, which it was thought could then be used in “drive away” thefts of fuel from petrol stations.  Clutch screws were available from the Neighbourhood Police Team, which could be used to prevent registration plates from being removed.

Inspector Knopp then introduced Marion Lewis, Neighbourhood Watch Co-Ordinator, who had been working on re-launching Neighbourhood Watch.  Marian Lewis explained her work and gave a presentation on the re-launch of Neighbourhood Watch, a copy of which is attached at the end of these minutes for information.

During this presentation and the ensuing discussion, particular attention was drawn to the following points:-

·            During 2010, £1 million had been awarded to build the sustainability of Neighbourhood Watch nationally.  Part of this had been the development of a new logo, and “brand repositioning” through the adoption of the Our Watch message;

·            Statistics showed that residents in areas with Neighbourhood Watch schemes were over 300 times less likely to be a victim of crime than residents in other areas;

·            Membership of Neighbourhood Watch was free and every scheme was registered with the Police.  There currently were 240,000 Neighbourhood Watch members in Leicestershire;

·            A new website had been set up and could be found at www.ourwatch.org.uk;

·            In order to encourage more people to join Neighbourhood Watch, especially younger people, a virtual membership scheme had been started.  Virtual members also were advised of “real” meetings in their areas, so they could make contact with other members if they wished.  Information on this could be found on the Our Watch website; and

·            If anyone interested in joining Neighbourhood Watch did not have access to a computer, details of schemes could be obtained from the Police;

·            When anyone signed up to Neighbourhood Watch, they could choose how they received messages and other information, (for example, by e-mail or telephone), and at what times of day; and

·            Crimes could not be reported through Neighbourhood Watch.  Established reporting methods should be used.