Minutes:
The Deputy Borough Commander (Superintendent David Tait) updated the Committee as follows:
The Committee were directed to the MOPAC (Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime) report that had been tabled concerning “Bromley Safer Neighbourhood Board Performance Summary”. The Committee studied the table on page 2 of the MOPAC report which detailed recorded crime data to April 2015.
The Committee were pleased to observe that there were percentage decreases in the areas of robbery, burglary, theft from persons and motor vehicles. They were also glad to see that there had been some percentage decreases over the last year in the areas of gun and knife crime.
However, over the last year there had been percentage increases in the levels of violence with injury, criminal damage, violence against the person, assault with injury, rape and sexual offences, youth violence, domestic abuse and homophobic crime, and the Committee were concerned about these matters, and puzzled by the increase in sexual violence. The Deputy Borough Commander spoke about each specific crime type, providing the Committee with commentary on the reasons for the respective increases.
The Committee heard that there had been an increase in the number of offences involving motor bikes and motor scooters; the police were using off road bikes to try and combat this in green areas.
With respect to criminal damage it was the case that 40% of these offences involved the breaking into of motor vehicles; the main areas that these offences were being committed in were St Mary’s Cray, Mottingham and Penge.
The Deputy Borough Commander referred the Committee to page 16 of the MOPAC report and elaborated on “stop and search” distinctions and targets. He also outlined “Operation Omega” which was a MET wide operation to infuse the streets with police officers, especially in problem areas. This had yielded good results. The Committee were reassured that dedicated Ward Officers were not being removed, and the idea of the operation was to avoid secondary investigations.
During the morning of Friday 19 June, police were alerted to aggravated burglaries committed in Barton Road, Sidcup and further addresses in St Georges Road, Bromley; Greenways, Beckenham; Hayes Way, Beckenham; Edward Road, Bromley and Camden Park Road, Chislehurst.
The four suspects were using two mopeds, armed with samurai swords and crowbars. Police stopped a minicab in Downham a short while later, arresting two men and subsequently recovering over £630,000 of stolen property, two mopeds and a number of weapons. Two suspects were still being sought in connection with the burglaries.
The Deputy Borough Commander updated the Committee concerning fighting that broke out involving a very large number of youths in the Oakley Road area of Bromley. There had been a party that was well run with door staff in attendance but was escalated via social media. It was thought that many of the youths involved had come from Lewisham. Three youths suffered stab injuries, and one was glassed in the face. A car was seized by the police, and investigations are ongoing. It was felt that the incident was not gang related.
The Deputy Borough Commander updated the Committee concerning the recent visit of the MET Commissioner to Bromley Library. The Commissioner was questioned about the proposed budget cuts and their future impact on policing in Bromley. It was noted that the annual cuts to the grant from the Home Office would make things very hard to manage by 2020.
It was expected that the police would have to make cuts of £800m to its £3.5bn budget over the next four years. This was in addition to cuts of £600m made over the last four years.
The Deputy Borough Commander informed the Committee that there had been a recent increase in officer numbers within the CID portfolio, and this was achieving good results as the police were using detectives on the initial investigation, to ensure all investigative opportunities were explored at that time. The importance of good forensic work could not be overstated. It was noted that over the last year, there were 1650 cases of residential burglary, and 932 that were non-residential.
The police had identified crime hotspots, and these were:
· Orpington Town Centre
· Bromley Town Centre
· Hospitals
· Penge
· Schools
The Chairman expressed concern over the data that showed that violence with injury figures seemed to have increased for Bromley Town Centre. The Deputy Borough Commander responded that alcohol was a big problem in most of these cases, alongside the granting of late night licences, and that the police had finite resources.
Cllr William Harmer felt that people were now more confident to report domestic abuse and sex related crimes to the police. He felt that LBB needed to work more holistically as a council in tackling crime, and that there were areas where the Renewal and Recreation Committee and the Environment Committee could get more involved.
Cllr Tony Owen felt that it was important to determine the root cause of the problem. The Deputy Borough Commander was of the opinion that it was difficult to determine the root cause without sufficient analytical data. Cllr Owen informed the Committee that a report was drafted in 2004 by Durham University entitled, “Profiling the Night-Time Economy: Bromley Town Centre”. He requested that Mr Paul Lehane access a copy of this report for distribution to Members.
Cllr Samaris Huntingdon Thresher expressed concern regarding the “red” areas on the MOPAC report, which detailed areas where crime levels had increased. She asked what LBB could do to be more pro-active and make the best use of officer resource. She also referenced the empty shop units in the high street, and made the point that LBB should pay attention to what business types were considered for the occupation of those units. She expressed the view that Bromley had reached saturation point as far as bars were concerned, and that it may be better to leave units vacant, rather than occupy them with more businesses selling alcohol.
The Deputy Borough Commander elaborated on page 16 of the MOPAC report concerning Stop and Search statistics; Cllr Cartwright asked if tangible data existed for clear up rates; the Deputy Borough Commander had brought this data to the meeting with him, and this was passed to Cllr Cartwright for his attention.
The Deputy Borough Commander informed the Committee that there were very few vacancies with the Safer Neighbourhood Teams, and that there were no vacancies with CID.
The Vice Chairman expressed his thanks to the police for what he regarded as excellent work in the Cray areas, stating that the population living in those communities were beginning to feel safe again.
RESOLVED:
(1) that the update from the Deputy Borough Commander be noted.
(2) that LBB should try and work holistically to resolve crime related problems, and that the PP&S PDS Committee should seek the involvement of the Renewal and Recreation Committee and the Environment Committee as appropriate.