Safer Communities | Durham Police & Crime Commissioner

Safer Communities is one of the PCCs six key priorities

The PCC will work with the Chief Constable and partners to:

Appoint an Anti‐Social Behaviour Champion to spearhead multi‐agency action to address persistent anti‐social behaviour and chair Community Trigger resolution meetings.
Tackle quality of life issues that matter most to residents such as anti‐social behaviour, fly tippling, vandalism and dog fouling.
Ensure signposting is reinforced with a clear distinction of who to direct ASB related issues to and how to get help.
Lobby the Home Office to consider replicating legal powers currently available to police in Scotland to enable officers to serve warnings, fines, and seize equipment from noisy, inconsiderate neighbours.
Ensure the availability of a trauma-informed approach to support victims of persistent, unresolved anti‐social behaviour.

Display guidelines on how to enact the (ASB) Community Trigger prominently on websites, notice boards and publications to enable all victims of anti‐social behaviour to seek redress.
Address student related ASB problems, working alongside Durham University and the local authority.
Encourage victims to submit a written account of the impact of ASB and be entitled to read it or have it read out on their behalf at the Community Trigger Meeting.
Review how the Police, Darlington Borough Council and Durham County Council take ownership of ASB reports to ensure people get the right support at the right time by the right organisation.
Use the full suite of criminal and civic tools and powers to address anti‐social behaviour effectively.
Enable victims of ASB to attend a resolution meeting to explain the impact the ASB behaviour is having on them.
Provide ongoing communication on what is being done locally to tackle ASB across a variety of media platforms, including social media, website, local press, and community visits.

The PCC will work with the Chief Constable and partners to:

Enhance area based multi‐agency hubs that support collaborative problem‐solving approaches to reduce crime, anti‐social behaviour and victimisation.
Ensure Police teams are more visible and accessible ‐ and there is a nominated and visible local officer or PCSO in every neighbourhood.
Put more Police Officers back on our streets.
Explore the feasibility of establishing a Community Orientated Policing (COP) bank similar to the NHS nursing banks to address demand pressures and provide additional capacity to respond to localised problem‐solving solutions.
Set up Community Safety Volunteer, Employment and Training (VET) Agency to support, promote careers and volunteering opportunities in the criminal justice sector.

Involve people with lived experience when working with victims of crime, anti‐social behaviour, addictions, and abuse.
Ensure the public know where to report issues and access the right services, at the right time from the right agency.
Promote and support a multi‐agency problem‐solving strategy to prevent and address neighbourhood crime (burglary, robbery, theft from the person, and vehicle crime).
Ensure an effective integrated offender management scheme for identifying neighbourhood crime offenders and intervene to prevent reoffending.
Promote and increase the take up of ‘Keep In The Know’, a free messaging service to keep local communities informed on what the local neighbourhood police and partners are doing.
Encourage residents to report crime and anti‐social behaviour to enable positive action.

The PCC will work with the Chief Constable and partners to:

Ensure the police force has the necessary resources to respond to serious and organised crime threats (firearms, drugs, child criminal exploitation, fraud, economic crime, cyber, modern slavery, human trafficking).
Deliver on the strategic policing requirement.
Tackle and disrupt organised crime groups behind drug activity.
Recognise the exploitation of children and young people and continue to identify and safeguard those most at risk.
Support the coordination of the local, regional and national response to modern slavery through the National Anti‐Trafficking and Modern Slavery Network.
Develop a public health approach to shape the partnership work to prevent and reduce serious violence.