Agenda and minutes

Members resolved to act as the Crime and Disorder Scrutiny Committee.

Members noted the minutes from the previous meeting.

Members noted the scrutiny forward programme for 2017/18.

Inspector Declan Cahill provided the Committee with an update on the progress made by South Wales Police and partners in relation to the Operation Grey Denver Action Plan. Inspector Cahill reported on the work being undertaken by the Homelessness and Anti-Social Behaviour Multi Agency Risk Assessment Conference (MARAC). Inspector Cahill informed Members that MARAC was a partnership based group chaired jointly by the Authority and South Wales Police which met by-monthly and referred perpetrators of anti-social behaviour to the relevant support services where appropriate. Inspector Cahill stated that the previous meeting was held in December and it was reported that living accommodation had been provided for six out of eight repeat offenders who were previously homeless. Inspector Cahill informed Members that using the powers of arrest was always a last resort as the Police often dealt with vulnerable individuals who required assistance from various support services. Inspector Cahill added that the meetings were a long term commitment by all partners.

Inspector Cahill informed Members that Inspector Roy Portlock had devised a new patrol strategy with the objective of preventing crime, preserving life and buildings, and keeping the peace. Inspector Cahill stated that street patrols were in place in Neath town centre for up to two hours each day. Inspector Cahill explained that the Police had the power to issue Section 35 notices to individuals behaving in an anti-social manner which required them to leave a designated area for 24 hours. Inspector Cahill added that a breach of these conditions resulted in arrest.

Inspector Cahill updated Members on the progress made following the Committee’s recommendation at the previous meeting to prioritise the development of a clear and accessible method of incident reporting and information sharing that met the needs of the public and businesses, as captured on the Operation Grey Denver Action Plan. Inspector Cahill reported that a mobile phone application had now been developed by the Authority and South Wales Police for local businesses to pass information to the local Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs) on duty in Neath. Inspector Cahill stated that this was an information sharing application which was not intended for public use, and not designed to replace the reporting of incidents via 101.

Inspector Cahill provided an update on the 101 crime reporting service. Inspector Cahill offered Members the opportunity to visit the call centre where the 101 calls were received in order to observe the process. Inspector Cahill reported that between April and October last year the call centre received around 500 emergency calls a day and around 2,000 comments were made on South Wales Police’s Facebook page each day. Inspector Cahill informed Members that since November the Police had allocated resources to monitor social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter for any reports and information on criminal activity. Inspector Cahill stated that these dedicated resources were monitoring social media sites 24 hours a day and seven days a week. Inspector Cahill re-iterated that the 101 service should always be contacted in the first  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4a