Agenda item

To receive an update from Phillip Wilkinson, Wiltshire & Swindon Police and Crime Commissioner.

To discuss the Police and Crime Plan in relation to the Warminster Area.

The Area Board received an update from Philip Wilkinson, Wiltshire & Swindon Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC). The update included but was not limited to the following points:

·       The PCC outlined that he had now been in post for three years and was currently in the process of rewriting the Police and Crime Plan and would be able to be more specific with trends.

·       It was outlined that such improvements had taken place due to having a proper HQ with effective leadership and an effective chain of command in place of the previous committees that had been used. This was therefore enabling the Police to have the right people, systems, and policy procedures in place.

·       It was noted that though there had been improvements there were still issues for concern for example continuing to improve call response rates and providing support for victims.

·       It was outlined that as arrests and prosecutions had risen, each crime type had decreased within the county, including domestic abuse, violent crime, rape, and anti-social behaviour. This suggested a direct correlation with the effectiveness of the Force.

·       A positive overview was provided for speeding, with it noted that previously 1,324 points, fines and courses had been awarded, which had now risen to circa 15,000 in the last year.

·       Wiltshire Police was now the top performing Force for County Line disruptions per capita, with reference made to the joint regional work with other forces for Op Scorpion.

·       It was outlined that the new Police and Crime Plan would include two new priority areas of retail crime and harm caused to shop workers.

·       An overview of the work being conducted regarding rural crime was provided, with it noted that previously the rural crime team had only had two officers, which had now been expanded to nine officers as part of a joined-up approach with fourteen individuals arrested since 1 October who had been engaged in serious rural crime.

After the update, there was time for the following questions and points to be raised:

·       A discussion took place regarding how decreasing crime figures are correlated with Police activity and the public’s reluctance to report crime, to which it was suggested that as trust is rebuilt it crime rates would generally rise due to the public reporting more.

·       The notion of selling Police stations and having Police hubs was discussed, with it suggested that stations that had been closed was due to the running expense not justifying the footfall experienced. It was suggested that Warminster was in a good position as there were four Police stations locally with a custody suite in Melksham. It was stated that currently the PCC did not know the budget he would be set by government, but previously Wiltshire had delivered more than most other Forces in the country though they had received less funding due to population density.

·       A further point was raised regarding custody suites with there having been various research projects to consider how these might be staffed including possible outsourcing.

·       Positive feedback was provided to the PCC in regard to the increased Police presence in the villages.

·       The process involved with setting up Speed watch was discussed, with reference to Wiltshire Council guidelines that had shown that in certain areas of Warminster there was only perceived speeding and not enough against the guidelines to warrant Speed watch.

·       Further comments were also raised regarding the importance of submitting SID data in order to enable the Police to greater target their resources and enforcement.