National praise for Safer Streets

Communities benefitting from the Home Office Safer Streets Fund are more likely to be confident in their safety, according to an independent evaluation of the first round of funding – which included projects in Castle Ward, Wellingborough, the Portland Place area of Northampton and All Saints in Kettering.

The Safer Streets Fund was launched in January 2020 with the aim of reducing acquisitive crime in high-crime neighbourhoods. Northamptonshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Stephen Mold was awarded £1.4 million to carry out practical crime prevention measures in three areas of Wellingborough, Kettering, and Northampton.

In Northampton, more than £550,000 has been invested in securing car parks, bike parking facilities, increasing CCTV coverage and security improvements to hundreds of homes in the Bouverie estate and Portland Place.

In Wellingborough, 74 gates were installed in alleyways behind homes in the Victoria area, to increase their security. The town centre CCTV system was extended; 2,000 homes received security packs and 600 received home security improvements.

And the All Saints area of Kettering benefited from £280,000 that was invested in 18 alley gates, 15 new CCTV cameras, home security packs for 139 homes, and crime prevention devices for 60 homes.

The Home Office evaluation has showed an improvement in residents’ perceptions of their local police doing a good or excellent job and an increase in residents’ awareness of the Safer Streets programme.

Minister of State for Crime & Policing, Chris Philp, said:  “Increasing public safety in our communities, and restoring people’s confidence in the police and pride in where they live, is an absolute priority.  This funding gives local people the power to make real changes in their area, as well as driving investment in businesses and jobs.”

Northamptonshire has continued to benefit from the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner’s commitment to the Safer Streets Scheme and since 2020, a total of £3.3 million has been granted by the Home Office to the Commissioner’s projects to make the county safer.

Northamptonshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Stephen Mold said: “The Home Office evaluation shows what we already know, that the positive impact of investing in initiatives to improve local environments makes people
feel safer and more engaged in their communities.”

Op Repeat to continue tackling doorstep crime

Training for health and social care professionals to help them recognise and tackle doorstep crime is being extended for two more years, and will reach other community groups and charities thanks to funding from Northamptonshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Stephen Mold and Cadent.

After a successful first year in Northamptonshire, Operation REPEAT, which stands for Reinforcing Elderly Persons Education at all Times, has already been delivered to around 200 trusted health and social care workers.

Operation REPEAT was designed to reinforce important information to protect vulnerable people against scams using the health and social care sector staff who visit regularly. Doorstep crime can affect anyone, but elderly and vulnerable people are most at risk of being targeted by rogue traders, unscrupulous salespeople, distraction burglars and bogus callers and Op REPEAT provides an effective means to reach these people.

Northamptonshire Carers, who employ over 120 staff, and support over 22,000 individuals across the county, have put many of their staff through the Operation REPEAT training and plan to incorporate it into their staff induction program in 2023.

Reg Burrell, Director of Operation REPEAT, said: “Prevention through education is the key to combating this type of crime and the funding we have received from the OPFCC is enabling us to extend the scheme not only for a further year but also to other community groups and charities in the county.”

Northamptonshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, Stephen Mold, added: “I am investing in partnerships and resources that disrupt and prevent crime and exploitation and help to keep the most vulnerable people in our county safe. I hope that through this programme we can reach out to even more people particularly at a time when people simply cannot afford to be ripped off.”

Classroom sessions educate Corby pupils on serious crime

Two Corby schools have been involved in a trial scheme to educate young people about drug harm, violence against women and girls and serious violent crime.

Year 9 students from Kingswood Secondary Academy and Lodge Park Academy took part in two days of activities before the Christmas holidays. The scenario began with a fictional incident at a house party where a young woman was sexually assaulted, and a young man was stabbed. It ended with a surprise mock arrest by Northamptonshire Police.

Students heard audio of a witness statement and the perpetrator boasting about the incident before being split into groups to participate in an interactive classroom session to discuss the consequences.

The initiative was organised by Corby PCSO Steve Coles, and is being trialled thanks to a partnership between Northamptonshire Police, the Community Initiative to Reduce Violence (CIRV), the Office of the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner’s Youth Service, the Youth Offending Service, NGAGE and other colleagues from the Criminal Justice System.

After the session, pupils spent time learning about the roles each agency has within the legal and social care systems, and how they support young people affected by crime.

One Year 9 student commented: “This was an interesting and educational day as we did not know a lot of things about the law and young people. Getting lots of information from the Youth Service and police does make you really think about the consequences and how it can affect you.”

The initiative was supported by Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Stephen Mold.

Stephen said: “In the county, one in four serious violence offences involves someone under the age of 18, so it is crucial that we reach the younger generation and give them the confidence to make the right choices to avoid getting involved in or becoming a victim of serious crime.”

Telematics data to help transform police and fire fleets

New technology will be fitted to every vehicle in the Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service fleet to help improve its current efficiency, save money and inform how it can become greener in the future.

Lem Freezer, Head of Joint Transport and Logistics for both Northamptonshire Fire and Northamptonshire Police

The Fire Service has more than 150 vehicles in its fleet, including fire engines and specialist vehicles for road traffic collisions, emergency first responses and water and animal rescues.

All of these vehicles will now be fitted with telematics which will allow valuable real time data to be captured and enhance the performance of the Service’s fleet. It brings the Fire fleet in line with the Northamptonshire Police fleet, which has seen telematics already fitted into more than 400 vehicles.

The telematics system has already proven useful in allowing parts of the policing fleet to be re-purposed. This has helped support the new Roads Policing Team with procuring both new specialist vehicles, as well as vehicles being redeployed to it from existing departments. This has led to better control of the fleet supported directly by the telematics data, effectively saving the Force a £600k bill in new vehicle investments.

The shared telematics system will also allow for joined up working for both Fire and Police in some response situations within the county, and also allows real time comparison in performance with other Police and Fire services.

The data will give good information to target resources, look at potential fuel savings and inform vehicle replacement programmes in the future.

Lem Freezer, Head of Joint Transport and Logistics for both Northamptonshire Fire and Northamptonshire Police, said: “Vehicle telematics are a proven tool to support vehicle fleets and achieve optimum utilisation.

“We will look to make our fleet as green and as sustainable as it possibly can be. Having accurate data available to us will allow us to make informed decisions as to what we can do to achieve that.”

Stephen Mold, the Northamptonshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, added: “It’s important that both Fire and Police have access to technology that gives them the best data to inform service delivery.

“The addition of telematics to the Police fleet has set us on the way to achieving that, and I am glad to see that the Fire fleet is following suit.”

Workshops train young men to stand against harassment

Workshops to help male students better understand sexual harassment and abuse against women are being held at Northampton College, encouraging them to challenge or intervene when they see inappropriate behaviour.

The workshops are funded by Northamptonshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Stephen Mold as part of a programme to tackle harassment and cultural attitudes towards women and girls. It is part of the ongoing Safer Streets project being delivered across the county.

Training sessions for more than 600 students will take place in the coming months and 10 teachers will also be trained in this area of work to ensure that the project continues into the future.

Principal of Northampton College, Pat Brennan-Barrett said: “Keeping our young people safe is of paramount importance to us at the college and anything we can do to start a conversation around tackling violence against women has to be a good thing.”

The training challenges young men to reflect on their behaviours and the behaviours of others.

Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, Stephen Mold said: “We are delighted to be working with Northampton College on this training, which shifts the focus from women keeping themselves and  challenges the culture and attitudes that can lead to abusive behaviour.”

Spotlight on 2022

Here’s a round-up of some of the highlights of the past year for the Office of the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner.

January

January

CCTV help points installed in parks in Northampton to allow people in need of help to raise the alarm quickly.

February

February

The Commissioner brings the Licensing SAVI scheme to Northamptonshire, which helps licensed venues improve safety for customers. 50 venues have signed up so far.

March

Kit Malthouse MP visited Hemmingwell in Wellingborough to see the Safer Streets scheme improvements – including extra CCTV and new doors and home safety products for residents.

April

April

The Knife Angel, a sculpture made from 100,000 discarded knives, toured in Northamptonshire to serve as a reminder of the dangers of carrying a knife.

May

Four new fire engines, each costing roughly £350k, were unveiled. It marked the first major investment in the NFRS fleet in more than a decade

June

Stephen announced Mark Jones as his preferred candidate to replace Chief Fire Officer Darren Dovey, when he retired in October.

July

July

The Commissioner helped fund 17 new critical bleed control cabinets, installed by Off the Street NN. The cabinets contain vital first aid equipment aimed at saving lives.

August

Stephen visited an Elite Survival Day, a Commissioner funded scheme delivered by police officers which helps young people on the cusp of gang involvement.

September

September

The Commissioner funded a new, environmentally-friendly fleet of hybrid motobikes, which will help Neighbourhood Policing Teams in their work.

October

A football tournament was held for young people from two Northamptonshire estates with high levels of gang activity. The event helped educate them on the dangers of gangs and carrying knives.

November

The new Flare Report app was launched in Northamptonshire so that women and girls can anonymously report inappropriate behaviour such as catcalling which makes them feel unsafe.

December

December

Stephen joined forces with Northampton Town FC to say enough is enough to the harassment of women and girls. Cobblers players took part in a promotional campaign encouraging people to check their own behaviour and not become bystanders.