Agenda item

To receive updates from the Town and Parish Council Representatives, and from other partner organisations:

·       Dorset and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service

·       Wiltshire Police

·       Police and Crime Commissioner

·       Town and Parish Councils

·       MOD/MCI

The Chairman referred the meeting to the written updates in the agenda pack and verbal updates were received from the following partners:

·       Dorset and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service (DWFRS)

Dave Adamson apologised that he was slightly late. He referred attendees to the written report and stated that he was happy to answer questions. There were no questions from attendees.

·       Wiltshire Police

Tina Osbourn, Amesbury Police Inspector, gave a brief update to supplement her report in the pack. Two warrants under the misuse of drugs act had been implemented against two properties in Archers Gate, both had been successful and investigations were ongoing. The Community Speed Watch (CSW) teams had been out and about and were being supported by the local police team. Two areas they were going to concentrate on in the coming weeks were Boscombe Road and Stonehenge Road. Community Engagement was underway at various locations including local youth clubs. Crime prevention advice had been given to local residents especially on rouge traders where problems with this had been reported. Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB) had been reported, with a particular issue at Archers Gate regarding parking and advice was being given regarding that. Poaching and hare coursing issues were on going and the force were working proactively with other counties to try to tackle this. There had also been a few burglaries at local farms and the rural crime team were engaging with farmers to give prevention advice. Community consultations were underway, themes and dates would be advertised on social media platforms.

Cllr Rob Yuill thanked Tina for the work the force was doing on Archers Gate and it was agreed they would meet to discuss ASB problem areas. In response to a question as to whether an officer would be able to attend Amesbury Town Council meetings it was explained that it would down to capacity, if an officer was on duty and available, they could. Monthly email updates were also sent to Town and Parish Councils. 

·       Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC)

The recently elected PCC, Philip Wilkinson gave an update to the meeting. As some background the PCC explained that he had, had a long career in the Army and worked abroad on threat assessments and mitigating strategies for the Police amongst others. He lived in Enford in Wiltshire and was engaged with the rural community. County Lines, reducing rural crime, speeding and ASB were priorities for him. The PCC hoped to deploy more enforcement officers with cameras as a deterrent and wanted to organise CSW teams to have a central database and share data, which could be funded by monies raised by fines. He also wanted to develop targeted programmes to tackle really serious crimes. Community outreach and understanding people’s issues was high on the agenda. The PCC also detailed how he hoped to deliver a new Police Station in Salisbury, which hopefully would have a custody suite, as this would prevent officers from having to transport people who were arrested to Melksham. 

The Chairman invited the DWFRS, Police and PCC to the Area Board drop-in session on 4 October.

·       Town and Parish Councils

There were no updates from local Town and Parish Councils.

·       MOD/MCI

Lt. Col. Glyn Williams, of Larkhill Garrison was new in post and now that the Army Rebasing was over, he wanted to increase integration with the local community. Lt. Col. Williams would be the lead contact for the Stonehenge Community Area going forward.

The Chairman thanked all the partners for their updates.