Agenda item

Inspector Chris Cockerill from the City Centre Local Policing Unit gave a presentation on the LPU’s activities from January 2011.  A copy of this presentation is attached to the minutes.

It was reported that in February 2011, the Police changed the model of response in Castle Ward. 999 responses were now dealt with by six LPUs, and were covered by shifts of 41 officers over a five-shift cycle. Officers were based at different locations in the community, and the Police were considering an office base at QE College, but that this would depend on receipt if sufficient funding.

Insp. Cockerill outlined crime figures for Castle Ward for the financial year 2010-11.

8,996 crimes were reported within the ward, which spanned a variety of offenses.  It was reported that there was a 5.1 per cent reduction in crime based on figures for the same period the previous year. Furthermore, reported crime had been going down in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland over the past three years. However, there had been an increase in burglaries in the Clarendon Park area at the beginning of the year. It was thought the burglaries were committed by one prolific burglar who was subsequently caught.

Crime figures from April 2011 to the present date were down 3.7 per cent. Other figures from across the BCU were reported as follows:

Burglary                                 down 34%

Theft from vehicles              down 41%     (almost half the amount for the same

time period the previous year)

Theft from shops                  down 25%

Anti-social behaviour          down 25%

Anti-social behaviour, particularly street drinking, was a significant problem for the Joint Action Group (JAG), but figures for street drinking incidents were down by nearly 50 per cent which was visibly. This was due in part to working jointly with the City Council on offender management.

Inspector Cockerill stated the Police wished to hear from people in connection with the main issues they thought there were in the community. Information passed to the Police is then fed back into the JAG, which consisted of councillors, housing, Fire Authority, Chamber of Trade, etc. The information consequently helped to shape projects, for example, the ‘Prevent and Deter’ project, whereby potential offenders were spoken with before they committed crime. Crime was managed through the tasking and co-ordination of the group, targeting offenders and crime ‘hot spots’.

In answer to a question, Inspector Cockerill stated there was some correlation between neighbourhood watch schemes and crime figures, but not always. Information on the local area was published in a six-monthly newsletter, the Police website and through Inspector Cockerill’s blog.

Priorities for the area included aiming to reduce prostitution. Initiatives for controlling prostitution in the area included an Anti-Social Behaviour camera, operated remotely in partnership with the Council. This would enable number plate identification of vehicles.

The Police had also worked with the two Universities following the spate of thefts of property in the city centre, and students were warned to look after their property, particularly mobile phones.

In conclusion, Inspector Cockerill reported falls in crime statistics over the last three years, and the Police would be working with communities to identify priorities for the area. He also asked that issues be reported to officers directly at Mansfield House Police Station.

Residents were then given the opportunity to question Inspector Cockerill and the following issues were raised;

a)    There were issues with anti-social behaviour on and around New Walk, from people leaving pubs and clubs, and that it was having an undesirable effect in the area. It was also stated there were similar issues in the Queens Road area. Residents were concerned at issues would increase once the Universities opened again in the Autumn. It was stated New Walk was a ‘No Drinking’ zone and residents asked what the Police were doing to tackle issues in the area. The Police responded that reports of anti-social behaviour were fed back to the Team that covered New Walk to respond. Licensing issues were dealt with by the licensing authorities, and it was the City Council who set closing times for licensed premises. There was potential for the introduction of night-time levies, with premises paying a levy if they wished to stay open past a particular set time. Money acquired from levies would be ploughed back into managing issues, with 70% going to the police and 30% to the local authority. Residents asked Officers based at the Universities to speak with student unions to stop pub crawls during Fresher’s week and prevent public order issues. It was reported that it was often private promoters who organised such events for students. The Police added that they were not aware of some events occurring until they took place. Universities now paid for extra police to be on site to cover events.

b)    A resident complained that Leicester University had closed a right of access.

The Police said they would investigate the matter, and that they would raise this with colleagues at the Fire Service.

c)    Residents complained about a 24 hour gym on Filbert Street and Warwick Street, with customers of the gym parking where residents usually parked. Councillors explained that the issues were for traffic enforcement to investigate and that they would feed the issue back to them. It was reported that the car park planning permission on Filbert Street would expire in the Autumn, and any further application would be opposed. A resident stated she had heard that another large De Montfort University building would be placed on the site and that it would reduce daylight to her property. It was stated that Councillor Kitterick had opposed the planning application at the time but it had been approved.

d)    Residents complained about cyclists on New Walk and asked what the Police were doing to curtail this, and it was felt that some cyclists were aggressive and placing people’s safety at risk. Residents from the Queens Road area also stated that this was an issue,. The Police stated that they were enforcing bylaws when cyclists were seen on New Walk and issued with fixed penalties.

Inspector Cockerill and his colleagues were thanked for attending the meeting and giving a presentation.