One of my key roles as Police and Crime Commissioner is to hold the Chief Constable to account on behalf of the public, and make sure that Derbyshire Constabulary deliver on the key strategic priorities included in my Police and Crime Plan 2021/2025.
The Performance Scrutiny Meetings are just one of the ways that I hold the Chief Constable to account. It is an opportunity for the force to provide extensive evidence on their performance and plans for improvements where necessary on the key priorities. It is also an opportunity for the public to send in specific additional questions.
Neighbourhood Crime and ASB are key priorities in my Police and Crime Plan and I am committed to working with the Constabulary and other partners.
I would like to thank everyone who has taken he time to submit a question. My office received 11 questions in total, which were addressed during the meeting.
Below are the questions that were submitted to me, alongside the response to those questions from the Chief Constable. The Agenda and Papers submitted at the meeting are available to view.
Please be advised that the next PSM meeting is on Tuesday 16 May and the topic is Road Safety. Please see the website for more details on upcoming PSM’s for the rest of the year.
Thank you once again for taking the time to submit a question.
Police and Crime Commissioner for Derbyshire
Angelique Foster
The Agenda and Papers and Presentation submitted at the meeting are available to view.
Public Questions Submitted
Visible Policing
Q1) Why are there not any local officers on foot patrol, meeting the public and gleaning information. and reassuring the public, and why are there no CID officers based at Stations outside the Chesterfield HQ. (Resident from Bolsover)
Constabulary Response
Bolsover has a dedicated Safer Neighbourhood Team which is also supported by response officers from Clay Cross and Killamarsh, details of these officers and how to contact them can be found at Bolsover and Shuttlewood | Your area | Derbyshire Constabulary | Derbyshire Constabulary .
The team also have a Facebook and twitter page where residents can contact them and follow their patrols and engagement events. We have a community messaging service which is simple to sign up to and this provides information about the local area and News from the team. Home Page – Derbyshire Alert .
Divisional CID officers do cover Bolsover and, although they are not permanently based at this location, they do regularly work alongside the Safer Neighbourhood Teams and response officers.
Officers and staff in the SNT patrol in a variety of ways and at times this includes on foot.
Our SNTs work towards our minimum standards of engagement which are set out within Derbyshire’s Neighbourhood Policing Charter. This is available to view through our force website. Home | Derbyshire Constabulary
Our SNT officers and staff now have access to an engagement app which allows them to easily record all the engagement activity they undertake including the locations and method of engagement. This is reviewed by the Local Policing Inspector so we can see how we are performing and if there are any gaps.
We have CID officers based at a number of locations across the force, often at the larger bases, and nearer to custody suites.
Q2) Why are there no foot patrols by the police in ASB hot spots at peak times in the S43 area? (Resident from Bolsover)
Constabulary Response
Officers and staff within our Bolsover SNT endeavour to patrol ASB hotspots. This work is balanced against other local priorities and forms part of the targeted activity framework that our SNT’s deliver against.
We encourage members of the public to report ASB so we can understand the exact locations of the hotspots and work to implement problem management plans where the behaviours are ongoing and persistent. This will prioritise partnership working as we know that policing cannot solve issues in silo with there often being factors where partners can support.
You can report ASB online or via 101
Contact details for your local SNT can be found on Bolsover and Shuttlewood | Your area | Derbyshire Constabulary | Derbyshire Constabulary
Further to this our SNT officers and staff now have access to an engagement app which allows them to easily record all the engagement activity they undertake including the locations and method of engagement. This is reviewed by the Local Policing Inspector to see how we are performing and if there are any gaps.
If there are particular issues, then we will use resources from other teams to assist us in our patrols and problem solving.
Q3) When will South Derbyshire have its full allocation of officers available, as it is currently vastly understaffed. All I ever get when I send in dangerous and illegal parking pictures, addresses and postcodes, is a response about understaffed and how busy they are. As I am led to understand, South Derbyshire should have 27 officers available but there is only 16? (Resident from South Derbyshire)
Constabulary Response
The Constabulary and the Local Policing Inspector continually review staffing and whether there is sufficient resource to ensure adequate cover throughout the day to meet demand. The response we give will be based upon risk and threat, and we have a stringent process to prioritise our response.
The Neighbourhood Policing Team across South Derbyshire has recently had an uplift of police officers and one Sergeant which demonstrates the forces ongoing commitment to Neighbourhood Policing and making sure we have the right resource in the right places. There is ongoing recruitment for Police Community Support Officers (PCSO).
The issue raised is one that we are aware of, and we will act where possible. It may be that it is not just a police problem but one that needs resolving through partners and community work. Safer Neighbourhood Teams have completed several operations recently and prioritised dealing with reports of dangerous and illegal parking around schools. Through this, we have found that the issue is more inconsiderate and inconvenient parking rather than dangerous parking.
There are regular area meetings that members of the public are welcome to attend so these concerns can be raised and discussed with police and partners so a discussion can take place on how we can all look to resolve the issue. Forums are promoted through the South Derbyshire Council website and social media pages for Swadlincote SNT.
Vehicle Related
Q4) When are you going to stop people parking cars so as to make the pavement impassable? (Resident from South Derbyshire)
Constabulary Response
The SNT will attend reports of parking issues to make an initial assessment to see what the problem is and how it can be resolved. In the first instance we will work with partners and local residents to address the problem. Early intervention and awareness raising often supports resolution of the issues.
Residents are welcome to attend area forum meetings to support wider conversation with police and partners about the concerns raised, looking to see how we can work together to provide a long-term sustainable solution.
Forums are promoted through the South Derbyshire Council website and social media pages for Swadlincote SNT. The contact details for your local SNT can be found on your area within the Derbyshire Constabulary website
Home | Derbyshire Constabulary
In many instances the police are not the primary agency for dealing with parking issues, but the local council. We do work together to tackle these issues.
Q5) Why is it that the police totally ignore the fact that electric scooters are being used illegally on the streets of Derby, could you ask Miss Swann how many scooters have been seized and how many people have been prosecuted for breaking the law. They have no insurance and don’t wear the proper gear and the even use the roads. (Resident from Derby City)
Constabulary Response
When dealing with E-Scooters on the first occasion of being stopped a warning is given and the details are entered onto NICHE (our crime recording system) to ensure we have a record. On the second time the E-Scooter is seized.
Our SNT officers and staff from Traffic Management review this work with the SNT working with partners to reduce the concerns that the public may have. If a rider refuses to stop then this does present difficulties, but one that our SNT work hard to resolve.
Operation Sansweet was established to tackle this in Derby City. A Problem Management Plan was created to record to monitor the work of our Safer Neighbourhood Officers to deal with the issue. A warning is issued to first time offenders and their details recorded. Persons found to be using an E-scooter more than once are subject to the vehicle being seized under Section 165 of the Traffic Act. Document offences are considered in every interaction, including no license and no insurance are also considered.
Along with enforcement, education is a key element of the operation. Safer Neighbourhood Officers have visited numerous large and small retailers to engage with them around their responsibilities at the point of sale. Social Media posts have been shared to raise awareness and contact made with all secondary schools updating students on the law in this area.
During 2022 we have detected 230 offences using E-Scooters and have seized 29 E-scooters as a result.
As an E-Scooter is classed as personal light electric vehicle (PLEV) they are treated as a motor vehicle. The offences range from simple document offences (34) to theft offences (58), Robbery (8), Drugs offences (41) and Drink Driving (2). This is not an exhaustive list but demonstrates the force commitment to deal with this issue.
Our officers have received guidance on legislation and will deal with any offences they come across.
Specific Location
Q6) Shirebrook Park ASB – I understand this may be considered an ongoing investigation and has been an issue for a number of years. This has been repeatedly reported and discussed extensively however, nothing has changed. What is going to be done also to ensure this is not ignored/pacified again. PS – putting on a patrol when the issues occurs has little/no effect. (Resident from High Peak)
Constabulary Response
Glossop SNT have met with residents and neighbours of Shirebrook Park. We have met with NHW and hosted various events in this locality.
The park has been the subject of frequent visits by SNT Staff and LPU during the evening and early hours. Temporary CCTV was installed and did not highlight or record any issues at the time.
There have not been any calls for service to Police in the last 10 weeks.
Partnership working has seen The Clean Team are improving the litter situation. We continue to work with partners in this area to support a reduction in reported ASB. We encourage residents to ring us when issues are occurring so officers can attend, and we have an up to date understanding of what concerns are impacting our communities.
You can report ASB online or 101.
Glossop SNT can be followed on www.facebook.com/GlossopdaleSNT or via email GNNT@derbyshire.police.uk
Q7) Anti-social behaviour in the Sinfin District of Derby is an ongoing issue. What measures (apart from the Safer Neighboured Team) are the police looking to provide so that instances of anti-social behaviour are reduced. I am specifically looking at improved police presence on the ground rather than posters or occasional visits from officers. Specific issues include Cannabis smoking, off-road motor bikes using the park and nearby roads and pavements, groups of youths gathering, e-scooters on the pavements and roads, speeding cars? (Resident from Derby City)
Constabulary Response
The local SNT have secured the services of Derby County Community Trust who will be providing weekly sessions on the multi-use games area at Shakespeare Street. In addition to this, we also have the services of Derbyshire Cricket Foundation who are providing regular session on the multi-use games area at Tobermory Way.
We hope that both services will provide that opportunity for young people to interact, engage, take part in the sessions, and be diverted from ASB behaviour.
Partnership working is key to reducing ASB as it is not something police can solve on their own.
In relation to the e-scooters / off road motorbikes, we are regularly providing education around this to young people, attending schools and delivering inputs and the force have invested in some equipment to help us tackle off road motorbikes and provide us with additional tactics which we can utilise from Springtime onwards.
We have upcoming forum meetings for local residents to attend which are advertised on our social media pages. We also actively encourage reporting via 101 so that we have an accurate picture of the concerns impacting local residents and our communities. The contact details for the local SNT can be found on your area within the Derbyshire Constabulary website Home | Derbyshire Constabulary
Q8) Why is it that there are no beat police in Mickleover later in the afternoon and evening? I haven’t seen any in the city centre even though we’ve seen drug deals taking place on Peters Street. Reported to the council. (Resident from Derby City)
Constabulary Response
Our Safer Neighbourhood Teams work a shift pattern dedicated to meet the demands of neighbourhood policing including late afternoon and evenings. While our Teams are out on patrol, we encourage officers to upload their activities to social media to reach our wider communities. The number of officers within our SNTs have risen as a result of the national uplift programme and the forces commitment to Neighbourhood Policing. Our communities should see first-hand increased visible policing.
The Derby City Centre Safer Neighbourhood Team patrol the City Centre and in particular St Peters Street as part of their daily business. In the last six months the team have been supported with additional staffing for targeted patrols with varying aims, including a heavy police presence across the entire month of December. Staff utilise ASB powers alongside the Council Public Protection Officers and City Rangers to deal with the issues reported in St Peters Street and have successfully achieved several criminal behaviour orders against key individuals which they go onto enforce.
In addition, Derbyshire Constabulary has launched Project Servator across the City which utilises multiple police assets to disrupt and detect criminal activity. We are currently in a pilot phase for the project and unpredictable deployments will increase visible policing to this community. The public feedback on the police presence has been fantastic so far and we will continue to be highly visible moving forward.
Police Performance
Q9) After over five years of anti-social behaviour and harassment from a neighbour and reporting in, making a diary, installing CCTV and a dashcam we were told not to continue to report the anti-social behaviour as the neighbour in question was old (over 80) and a carer. We were totally misled by Derbyshire Constabulary into believing the Neighbour would be brought to justice. (Resident from Erewash)
Constabulary Response
We respond to all reports of crime and the Safer Neighbourhood Team will deal with ongoing issues between neighbours.
A multi-agency response is often required when several services may be needed to work together to solve an issue.
It is not always appropriate or possible that the Police take action through the criminal justice route and in these cases other agencies are required to help to address the underlying causes of a problem to help support a sustainable solution. The Police must act within the law and remain impartial.
Whilst I cannot comment on the specifics of a report or investigation within this public report our SNT will make contact to discuss the concerns raised.
Miscellaneous
Q10) Assuming 8 robberies (Taken from the PCC’s report) on average a day, that is on average 2,920 in one year. Of those 2,920 how many resulted in convictions? (Resident from North East Derbyshire)
Constabulary Response
In the previous 12 months there were 433 reported dwelling burglaries across NE LPU, this includes homes, sheds and outbuildings but also offences where damage is caused to entry points, but no access is gained. There were 346 offences reported in the previous year, so this is an increase of 87 offences.
On average 75% of residential burglaries are in homes. The positive outcome rate for burglary shows the force average is improving to 5.5% from 4.9 % in 2022 (nationally this is 5.2%)
The PSM report for MARCH 2023 details all the work taking place in the force to deal with neighbourhood acquisitive crime, which include burglary and our ongoing commitment to visit all victims of home burglaries.
Q11) Victim Support have advised that criminals have ‘friends in high places’ and they are unable to assist. They asked not be contacted again. How comfortable are you with this? (Resident from Chesterfield)
Constabulary Response
We are very concerned at what has been said in this question. The force would like to speak to the person raising the question to ascertain what was said.
If the victim is asking victim services not to call again, the force would expect victim services to refer the concern back so we can explore other opportunities to engage and support.
Our expectation is that through our OPCC commissioned support services we can offer support to all victims
If victim support has asked not to be contacted again then we would need to understand this in more detail and are therefore unable to complete a full response to this question.
