Agenda item

To receive updates from the following, with a chance to give feedback or ask questions:

·       Wiltshire Police Chief Constable – Catherine Roper

·       Amesbury Neighbourhood Policing Team (NPT) – Acting Inspector Caroline Ralph

Acting Inspector Caroline Ralph, Amesbury Neighbourhood Policing Team (NPT) gave an update to the meeting. It was explained that Caroline was covering for Inspector Ricky Lee, who had been moved to another post. In January a new inspector would be appointed for the area, so she would go back to being a Sergeant. The Amesbury NPT team was listed on the slides for this item which were included within the agenda pack.

Local priorities for the area were detailed, these included:

·       Theft from motor vehicles, which was mainly where work vehicles were targeted with tools being stolen. There had been an ongoing series of these thefts, and it was thought that a gang had been operating, as many of these thefts had a specific modus operandi (MO) and the gang were good at it. There had been cross county collaboration with other forces from Hampshire, Dorset and Avon & Somerset to tackle this as Wiltshire was not the only area being targeted. 3 people from out of the area had been arrested who were thought to be the main perpetrators and the thefts with the specific MO had stopped. The team had also provided crime prevention advice. 

·       Retail crime was another priority, where the team were working with businesses to tackle shoplifting. The team wanted to encourage businesses to report these crimes, and were giving prevention advice, such as relocating tills, getting CCTV and helping to identify repeat offenders. Some larger towns had the ShopWatch scheme, and setting this up in other areas was being looked at.

·       Anti Social Behaviour (ASB) was a priority, there had been an increase in ASB in Durrington, Larkhill and Bulford, mainly perpetrated by young people. Some of this was thought to be linked to the community tensions related to the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP). The police were working hard to reduce tensions and increase community cohesion.

·       Rural Crime was another focus for the team, including hare coursing and poaching. The NPT was working with the rural crime team to combat this and to increase visibility and patrol areas. Likewise, the teams were working to support those affected.

·       Vulnerable checks were also a priority ensuring that the most vulnerable got supported.

The Acting Inspector explained that the ARAP scheme and Op Lazurite (discussed at previous Area Boards) was a government led scheme for Afghan citizens who worked for or with the UK Government in Afghanistan in exposed or meaningful roles and may include an offer of relocation to the UK for those deemed eligible by the Ministry of Defence and who are deemed suitable for relocation by the Home Office. Starting around October/November 2023, some Afghans were relocated to Larkhill, with around 260 Entitled Person’s (EP’s) being relocated there so far. Also, around 150 had been relocated in service accommodation in Bulford and Durrington. The relocations in these areas were temporary, and the majority of EP’s would be moved to other locations in the future. However, they would be present for a while and so the children were now enrolled in schools. There had been chatter on social media about risk to local people, the police received a few reports in relation to this, but no evidence was found to substantiate claims. There had more recently been some issues at a Durrington school, where local youths and Afghan youths had been fighting. There had been trouble on both sides and the police were working with partners to address this. Attendees highlighted that Avon Valley Academy had been doing excellent work to accommodate 85 new pupils.

Catherine Roper, Chief Constable of Wiltshire police, updated the meeting. It was her first time at the Stonehenge Area Board, and she stated she had been to quite a few Area Boards around the county it was really good to see the focus on local concerns in different areas. As Chief Constable her focus was more on strategic matters, so if there were any general strategic concerns or questions, attendees could raise these with her.

Attendees queried how long it would be before there would be a standalone police station with a custody suite in Salisbury, as currently anyone taken into custody had to be taken to Melksham. The Chief Constable (who had been in post since March 2023) was unaware why the Salisbury police station was closed, however there would have been reasons, which may have been related to finance, the building itself and footfall. It was explained that the police estate was the responsibility of the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) and as the Chief Constable she advised on what they needed from an operational perspective. It was noted that to develop from scratch a dedicated custody suite in or near Salisbury would cost millions. The Melksham custody suite had recently been renovated. Swindon could also be used as an alternative. The Chief Constable understood that options and plans were being looked at and considered, but there were no definitive plans at the moment and it was somewhat dependant on finding the correct site.      

A Member highlighted some issues with people riding e-bikes and e-scooters, some of which did not have lights, and others which had clearly been adapted, and some going very fast. The Chief Constable stated that they were also concerned about this, and the police would do their best to tackle matters by increasing presence and enforcement. An attendee from Shrewton Parish Council stated that they had also experienced some issues, and thought it was probably ignorance that people did not realise that it was illegal to use e-scooters on the road or in public spaces, and that they could be seized as a result. It was confusing as there were trials in some areas, and in those places, the e-scooters could be used. Shrewton Parish Council found that by linking to the legislation on their website, and referring people to this, it stopped the issues. The police stated that they would seize adapted/illegal ones and for others would usually give a warning first; however, they would also push the legislation and then follow with enforcement. Attendees were encouraged to report issues.

Members detailed issues with parking in Archers Gate and Kings Gate, a leaflet drop was suggested which could cover this and the e-bike/scooter issues. Others felt that enforcement was the best route to prevent issues.

Members also highlighted problems with land incursions in the local area from the traveller community. The police explained that when the land was Wiltshire Council or Town Council owned then the police could act more quickly. When the land was privately owned, the landowner could say that they could stay for a short period which delayed matters. Members detailed a rise in crime during these incursions, for which no one was arrested. The Acting Inspector had not been dealing with this but thought that if suspects were identifiable then they should be dealt with. She further explained that in some areas such as the Test Valley, they had got an injunction which might have pushed travellers into this area. Their aim was to make the area less attractive to these communities (target hardening) and she was working with Wiltshire Council and Amesbury Town Council on this to see if there was a possibility of getting an injunction in this area too. However, there was a responsibility for their welfare and vulnerabilities that had to be considered.

An attendee from the Stonehenge and Avebury World Heritage Site Co-ordination Unit welcomed the rural crime update, in particular increases in patrolling. It was explained that WhatsApp groups had been set up for farmers with police which had been found useful and it was hoped that these would continue. The Chief Constable explained that whilst it was useful and the police did monitor these groups, they were not monitored 24/7, so issues should also be reported to 999 for emergencies or 101 for non-emergencies, or people could also report online. Poaching, hare coursing and theft of high value plant were a high priority for the police as apart from the distress caused to those affected, there were links to organised crime, money laundering and gambling.

As a strategic update the Chief Constable stated that in the summer of 2022 Wiltshire Police were put into the Engage process, which was similar to special measures, as the service had not been performing well enough. The Chief Constable had joined in March 2023 and set about looking how to address issues and make improvements. Issues that had been raised resulting in the Engage process included that there was no strategy, no framework, people were not held to account, and the control room had not been delivering satisfactory responses to 999 and 101 calls.

The Chief Constable had looked to swiftly make improvements, the force was on a journey but had improved. His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) undertook independent assessment and acknowledged that they had improved. Resources in the control room had been increased, dedicated neighbourhood teams had been reintroduced, and people were now being held to account. The force had come out of the Engage process in May 2024.

A summary of the latest HMICFRS report and findings could be seen on the Wiltshire Police website here:

https://www.wiltshire.police.uk/news/wiltshire/news/2024/august-2024/Wiltshire-Police-improvements-recognised-in-latest-PEEL-inspection-report/. Significant improvements had been evidenced. The force were now 17th in the country out of 43 in the control room in terms of response times, which was a vast improvement. They had more officers than they have had for a decade. Recruitment had now been paused as all roles were full. The force would continue working to improve until they were rated as outstanding.

The Chairman stated that the police did an excellent job, and there had been a noticeable improvement in attitude and commitment and thanked the officers.