[From L to R : Inspector Joanna Hayward-Melen; Wera Hobhouse MP; Avon and Somerset Police and Crime Commissioner Clare Moody; PCSO Chloe Brooks.]
Our Bath MP, Wera Hobhouse, has been ‘out on the beat’ with some of our local police officers.
From L to R : Inspector Joanna Hayward-Melen; Wera Hobhouse MP; PCSO Chloe Brooks; Avon and Somerset Police and Crime Commissioner Clare Moody.
She hit the streets in Bath city centre, together with the Police and Crime commissioner for the region, Clare Moody, her Staff Officer, Inspector Jo Hayward-Melen, and PC Ben Fielding and PCSO Chloe Brooks from the Bath Neighbourhood Policing Team, to hear about the Commissioner’s Safer Streets Summer Initiative.
Part of a new national initiative, launched by the Home Secretary earlier this month, the scheme aims to make our town centres safer, more vibrant spaces where residents, businesses and visitors feel secure and welcome. Bath is one of 19 town centres targeted in the Avon and Somerset area.
The Chief Inspector for Bath and North East Somerset, Scott Hill, and his teams are working closely with local partners, including the community safety partnership and the Business Improvement District, to deliver a range of impactful activities, with a focus on tackling anti-social behaviour (ASB), shop theft, and other town centre crimes.
Supported by the immediate redeployment of experienced officers into neighbourhood policing roles and additional foot patrols through the Hotspot Action Fund, the summer plans in Bath will be delivering more proactive, visible and engaging policing across the area.
Wera Hobhouse MP (left) and PC Ben Fielding.
The additional foot patrols will be delivered by a combination of police officers on overtime and the Bath City BID Team, showing the possibilities of working with partner organisations to support businesses and residents in the town centre.
These patrols are part of a data-driven, national best practice approach to ASB and violence, with officers receiving dedicated patrol plans and bespoke briefing packs. They will also operate street surgeries in the city centre using the “Community Contact Vehicle” – a pop-up mobile police station which will be appearing in and around the city, providing a direct and visible police contact point.
A commitment to work more closely with businesses to share information, respond to incidents and target prolific shoplifters will, it is hoped, add to the effectiveness of the initiative.
Chief Inspector Hill explained:
“Over the summer we will also see partnership work to support safety in the night time economy, through the safe space and night marshals as well as a dedicated programme of activity in collaboration with the universities and colleges during freshers’ week, that seeks to ensure a safe and enjoyable environment for our extensive student community.
“Community engagement will be continuing in areas subject to increased patrols, including through the Bath and North East Somerset Violence Reduction Partnership, and my team will be working with partners to raise awareness of positive opportunities for children over the summer.”
He added that the plans will continue to develop and evolve over the summer, adapting to what is happening on the ground.
Through the government’s Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee, Avon and Somerset Police have secured £4.6 million in dedicated funding to enhance neighbourhood policing. This investment will support the recruitment of approximately 70 officers forcewide and strengthen its long-term workforce model.
To meet the government’s delivery timescales, officers with operational experience and local knowledge have been redeployed into neighbourhood roles to focus on tackling the problems communities say concern them most.
This increased capacity will help the police provide a more visible and responsive service, including here in Bath and North East Somerset.
L to R : Inspector Joanna Hayward-Melen; Wera Hobhouse MP; Lindsey Holdaway of HPH Commercial Property; Avon and Somerset Police and Crime Commissioner Clare Moody.
Police and Crime Commissioner for Avon and Somerset, Clare Moody, said:
“I look forward to working closely with Wera, and Chief Inspector Hill and his teams, as well as with residents, businesses and visitors throughout the summer and beyond and seeing the positive, lasting changes our combined efforts will bring.
“I am confident that the changes we are making will help our communities to see more visible policing, more engagement with residents and businesses and most importantly, more results.”
Wera Hobhouse, Liberal Democrat MP for Bath, commented:
“Bath’s residents, businesses and visitors need reassurance that our streets are crime-free, and so I welcome initiatives like these which strengthen Avon and Somerset Police’s ability to aspire to that.
“The additional resource and targeted actions from the initiative can play a vital role in helping us achieve our shared goal of safer, thriving communities, and I pledge to support the efforts of our hardworking police officers where I can, both locally and in Parliament.”
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