Minutes:
Council
welcomed the Rt.Hon.Alun Michael, the Police and
Crime Commissioner, Mr Peter Vaughan, the Chief Constable, Mr Matt Jukes, the
Chief Constable Designate and Mr Martin Jones, the Chief Superintendent, to
their annual meeting with Council.
Mr
Michael advised Council that this was the last meeting Mr Vaughan would attend
as Chief Constable as he would shortly be retiring and that Mr Matt Jukes would
be taking over the post. He advised
Members that when Mr Vaughan took up his position in 2010, the force was 43 out
of 44 in victim satisfaction. This had
substantially improved and the force was now in the top 3 or 4 in the
Country. The force was the 8th
largest in the Country and its budget had been reduced by £50m, also losing in the
region of 1,000 members of staff.
Members
noted that there had been a comprehensive handover period between Mr Vaughan
and Mr Jukes, with Mr Vaughan visiting staff to personally thank them for their
contributions. The 6 priorities remained in place, with the addition of a
further Value for Money priority. This
would include valuing and supporting staff and their development. Council was advised that since 2015 the national
police budget had been protected however the budget disseminated down to the
force had been cut. This had resulted in
increased pressure on staff, however the force had one of the best staff
attendances.
There
had been an increase in the number of vulnerable people in the area and a
review of community safety had been undertaken.
Improvements in community safety would have to be dealt with at
community level, working with local groups, the police and the Local Authority.
A
copy of the Executive Summary of the South Wales Police and Crime Reduction
Plan for 2017/21 was circulated at the meeting for Members information and
would be in place from January 2018.
Mr
Vaughan then thanked Members and Officers for their support and help during his
time in office and wished the Authority well for the future.
Mr
Jukes then gave Members a brief outline of his career to date and welcomed the
opportunity to improve on neighbourhood policing. He advised Council that the Welsh Government provided finances for 200 out of the 400
PCSO’s, and that many of the PCSO’s later went on to become PC’s. Members were advised that there was a concern
regarding the proportion of the money being spent on responding to incidents,
and felt that there was better value in resources being targeted to
prevention. Early intervention,
particularly with domestic and socio/economic issues, would, it was
anticipated, help to reduce crime.
Early intervention in relation to both children and those over 18 was
very important to prevent those individuals turning to crime and the Police and
Crime Commissioner advised that he took a great interest in offender
management.
Operational
priorities included Street Crime, for example organised drug trafficking and
‘Hidden Harm’, for example on-line crime and domestic abuse. In addition to these the force also dealt
with ‘Non Crime Demands’, for example missing persons and harassment on
Facebook, etc. One of the major challenges facing the force was policing major
events, such as rugby.
Members
then raised the following:-
·
The increase in antisocial behaviour particularly in Neath Town Centre
and Aberavon were highlighted. Members
were advised that this increase was due, in part to social issues such as
poverty, homelessness and substance misuse. In order to address this, a plan
had been put in place to ascertain what could be provided to reduce the
problems through multiagency case conferences.
·
Members also noted that many incidents were not being reported, with
problems with call handling and feedback being issues. The Police were looking at the ‘public
experience’ which included accessing the vulnerability of the caller in order
to correctly prioritise the complaint and to feedback. There were also peaks and troughs in the
number of calls coming in. The ability
to report incidents on-line was also going to be introduced.
·
Members raised the possible siting of the prison in Port Talbot and
asked whether, with the closure of the Port Talbot Police Station, there would
be sufficient holding cells and whether there would be an increased police
presence. Members were reassured that, from the experiences in both Bridgend
and North Wales, the impact of a prison was not expected to place significant
demands on police resources.
·
Members asked whether there was a Drink/Drive Campaign over the festive
season as it was felt that there was complacency amongst some people and were
advised that breath tests were targeted following intelligence received. There were insufficient resources to carry
out blanket testing, however there would be a campaign to remind people.
·
Members questioned the role of the PCSO’s, and in particular why they
did not have powers of arrest, and were advised that PCSO’s would then be
required to attend court hearings, etc and would then
not be available ‘on the beat’. In
addition it was noted that the use of ‘body videos’ were being introduced by
PCSO’s and that there had been positive feedback.
·
Members asked whether the priorities could be expanded to an all Wales
basis and noted that this could provide better value for money. Members were
advised that the PCC was supportive of policy being devolved to Wales.
·
Members asked for details of the opening hours of the Neath Police
Station and expressed concern that these had been reduced but that Local
Councillors and the public had not been informed. This would be investigated and Members
advised following the meeting.
·
Members asked for details of the work being undertaken to combat
incidents of VAWSVDA, and the work to be undertaken with the transformation
funds and were advised that 147 new posts had been developed in order to
address such things as protection of vulnerable adults, stalking and
harassment, cohesion and controlling behaviour.
Body worn cameras also allowed for evidence for the scene – allowing on
occasions victims not having to give evidence.
Work was ongoing with Barnados in relation to
identifying cases of sexual abuse and sexual exploitation. The police would be undertaking a survey in
the New Year to identify examples of sexual harassment.
·
Partnership working was seen as the way forward with the Local
Authority, Health, the Police and the Area Planning Board in dealing with
antisocial behaviour including such things as fly tipping, etc.
·
Concern was expressed that the valley areas did not experience the same
level of policing as the urban areas.
The Police advised that even though there were budget cuts, efforts were
made to achieve parity between valley and urban areas, with, for example, the
increased use of technology. The force was regarded, by the Home Office, as the
most visible in the UK.
·
In relation to Briton Ferry there was a problem with rogue and
unregistered landlords and drugs and the Police confirmed that they would continue
to target this area.
·
In relation to internet based crime, this included such things as child
abuse and fraud. The Police had released
information, via its Website entitled ‘Getting Safe On Line’ and digital
investigations, including Officers taking part in chat rooms, were ongoing to
address these issues. Prevention was the
best way forward and to this end raising awareness in schools would continue.
The
Mayor then made a presentation to Mr Vaughan as a sign of appreciation and
wished him a long, healthy and happy retirement.