Published: Monday, 4th June 2018
A case of ASB that was brought to the weekly Community Safety Hub has been resolved thanks to funds from the Community Safety Partnership.
The location, which is near to the Prince of Wales market bin store in Cannock, was raised at the Community Safety Hub as an area of significance as it featured ASB, fire-lighting/arson, risk taking behaviour and rough sleeping. The area was a growing cause of concern within the community and both the police and fire service were regularly called out to issues. It was quickly recognised at the Community Safety Hub that it would require a multi-agency response to address and resolve the ongoing issues.
The Community Safety Hub is a multi-agency meeting hosted by Cannock Chase Council, which aims to improve community safety across the Cannock Chase District. It identifies crime and vulnerability issues which are difficult to address through traditional working methods and which often require multi agency intervention. A wide range of statutory and voluntary organisations attend and offer guidance and support to an extensive variety of cases.
Cannock Chase Council in conjunction with the Community Safety Partnership and the Prince of Wales Theatre contributed to funds to purchase gates to secure the bins and stop the ongoing anti-social behaviour issues.
Councillor Carl Bennett, Portfolio Leader for Crime and Partnerships said “One of the Council’s priorities for 2018-2023 is the improvement of community wellbeing. When related to community safety, this is achieved through sustaining safe and secure communities. So I am delighted that the weekly Community Safety Hub has resolved this ongoing issue in Cannock Town Centre. This is an excellent example of partners working together to address concerns within the community. I am pleased to say that since the installation there have been no further reports of ASB or crime in this location.”
Duncan Rollo, Partnerships Manager, Cannock Local Policing Team, Staffordshire Police said “The proactive response from our partners in the Fire and Rescue Service, Crime Reduction and Cannock Chase Council ensured that all possible risks and solutions were quickly identified. This allowed the Police to commit extra resources short term to address the community concerns, knowing that Partners were working in the background to facilitate a long term solution. It was an excellent example of Partnership working, all involved respecting the knowledge and expertise of each other, working towards a common aim that was of benefit to the community”.
Dave Small, Crew Manager/Prevent Team Leader, Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service said “We had received multiple reports of fires around this location and it was highlighted that to prevent further problems the bin area should be secured. Following a spike of incidents a multi-agency approach through the Community Safety Hub thankfully resulted in the area being secured and since that time there have been no reported fires at the location”.