Building a safe and secure Essex
PFCC Roger Hirst launches his Police and Crime Plan 2021-2024
Preventing crime and keeping people safe are the aims of Roger Hirst, Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner for Essex as he launches his Police and Crime Plan today.
He is also opening his Crime Prevention Fund. £200,000 is available for groups and organisations working across the county to prevent crime. You can find out more here Community Grants – Essex Police, Fire & Crime Commissioner (pfcc.police.uk)
Roger said: “Safe and secure communities are the bedrock on which we build success and wellbeing for all.
“The Police and Crime Plan builds on what we have achieved so far and sets out the policing priorities and aims for keeping Essex safe.
“The plan brings together the police, partners and the public of Essex to build safe and secure communities, to ensure the public have confidence in their police force and that victims are satisfied with the service and support they receive.”
The policing priorities for Essex are:
- Further investment in crime prevention
- Reducing drug driven violence
- Reducing violence against women and girls
- Protecting vulnerable people and breaking the cycle of domestic abuse
- Protecting rural and isolated areas
- Preventing business crime, fraud and cyber crime
- Improving safety on our roads
- Encouraging volunteers and community support
- Improving support for victims of crime
- Supporting our officers and staff
- Preventing dog theft
- Increasing collaboration
Roger said: “We have made huge strides in recent years. Our commitment to local, visible, accessible policing means Essex Police has more than 600 officers than it had five years ago, and there will be over 700 by March 2022. New town centres teams, a Rural Engagement Team and Business Crime Team are making a difference and our Special Constabulary is now the second largest, and fastest growing in the country with over 500 officers.
“Our approach is working and since May 2016 we have seen a 33 per cent reduction in burglary, 15 per cent reduction in anti-social behaviour and 29 per cent reduction in the number of people killed or seriously injured on our roads.
“What we are doing is working but we need to do more of it. Drug driven violence, gangs and domestic abuse have all risen. They all have a very harmful impact on life in our county, and we need to tackle these.
“This Police and Crime Plan is about making a strategic commitment to prevention, a shift in our main effort from rapid response into a model of targeted prevention and early intervention. This is the approach that will help us get crime down across Essex.
“We also need to protect the vulnerable from being preyed on by County Lines gangs, we need to protect people in their homes from domestic abuse and we need to protect women and girls from violence and abuse on our streets. By working together, we can identify where people are most at risk and deliver effective interventions to keep them safe.”
He adds: “A key part of the Plan is asking the community and our partners to work with us to make Essex an even safer place. That’s why I am also launching my Crime Prevention Fund today. We have made money available to help community groups and organisations fund crime prevention initiatives, be that offering activities for young people, enabling people to feel safer in their homes, or helping those out and about in the evening as part of the night-time economy. There are some great groups and people working to prevent crime in Essex and we want to support them.”
Essex Police Chief Constable Ben-Julian Harrington said: “We want to continue protecting and serving the people of Essex, and the growth of the force in size and capability helps us do that.
“We need to reduce crime and bring those responsible to justice, focusing on the strategic priorities within the Police and Crime Plan alongside our statutory responsibilities.
“The biggest challenge facing Essex is around tackling violence, whether because of drug use and supply, domestic abuse, the night-time economy or where women and girls are victims.
“We will work with partners to prevent these crimes happening, support victims and communities and arrest and bring those responsible to justice.
“We have seen successes, with overall levels of crime beginning to diminish in the year prior to the pandemic.
“This trend has continued in many areas, even as the world returns to a new normality.
“With additional focus on crime prevention with community safety partners and the daily endeavours of our dedicated colleagues to help people, keep them safe and catch criminals and protect people, we will do even more to stop crimes from taking place.
“Our focus on reducing violence in all its forms, especially domestic abuse and serious violence, means we will tackle the people that cause the greatest harm to our communities whilst looking after and supporting the victims.
“We will continue to listen to victims of crime and diligently record what has happened to them.”
