Issue - decisions

The Committee received a report from the Police Sergeant regarding the policing and safer neighbourhoods trends.

 

The report outlined actions taken since the Committee on 2 February 2015. The current emerging issues/neighbourhood trends for each ward were also highlighted (see report for full details). Previous priorities and engagement activity noted in the report were:

       i.          Continue to target the supply of controlled drugs (Class A).

     ii.          Target road safety by addressing anti-social cycling and speeding.

   iii.          Reduce dwelling burglary.

 

The Committee discussed the following policing issues:

       i.          Contacting the police to become speed watch volunteers.

     ii.          Anti-social car parking near schools. SAC said sufficient warnings had been given and requested the Police to now take enforcement action eg issuing parking tickets.

   iii.          Cars parking in cycle lanes.

   iv.          Road safety near Addenbrooke’s Hospital.

    v.          The number of burglaries, specifically bikes in outbuildings.

   vi.          Cycle theft in Trumpington.

 vii.          Dwelling burglary.

viii.          Registering personal property through immobilise.com so the Police could trace property that was reported stolen.

   ix.          Checklist of information police would like members of the public to include when reporting crime.

    x.          Mismatch in reported information: Violent crime incidents were declining but the number of news headlines were increasing.

   xi.          Anti-social cycling, particularly by language school students.

 xii.          Cycles blocking pavements when parked on them. This was a trip hazard for pedestrians.

xiii.          Drug dealing in Rock Road and associated needle drops. Clean up requests to be made to the Operations Manager – Community Engagement and Enforcement.

xiv.          Management of the Cambridge Lakes.

xv.          Incidents of racial abuse near Cherry Hinton Hall.

xvi.          Anti-social behaviour involving dogs in the Cherry Hinton area.

 

SAC asked for the minutes to show their thanks for the neighbourhood policing work, particularly by PCSOs.

 

Members of the public asked a number of questions, as set out below.

 

1.       Mr Taylor raised the following points:

·       The Police & Crime Commissioner had undertaken to visit each Area Committee once a year. It was a shame this had not occurred.

·       Speeding had been omitted from the last series of Police priorities.

·       There were no statistics on road traffic offences or injuries, so queried how these were being tackled.

 

Sergeant Horton said speeding would be monitored more closely in future. Details had been left out of the SAC report due to an oversight.

 

2.       Mr Bower asked why the Officer said crime levels were dropping in his verbal report when high levels were listed in the SAC report.

 

Sergeant Horton said all area committees received the same report format. Violent crime statistics included domestic abuse, which may affect trend levels, but did not seem to be a major issue (in terms of numbers) given the lack of comment from residents.

 

3.       Ms Davis referenced Hills Road cycleway work. She asked what was more unsafe, cycling on the pavement or the unfinished roadway.

 

Sergeant Horton suggested cycling on the road where an even surface was available, and the shared pavement cycleway where the road surface was uneven.

 

The following priorities were unanimously agreed:

       i.          Discharge dwelling burglary as a specific SAC priority as it was a ‘standard’ cross-city police priority. SAC could re-instate it as a specific area priority if required in future.

     ii.          Continue to target the supply of controlled drugs (Class A).

   iii.          Continue to target road safety (and speeding) by addressing anti-social cycling and parking.

   iv.          New priority: Management of the Cambridge Lakes.