Southend Public Meeting
Residents and businesses in Southend are being invited to find out more about crime and community safety in the district at a public meeting being held by Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, Roger Hirst. Attendees will also have the opportunity to put their questions and concerns to a panel of experts.
The meeting will take place at the Civic Centre, Victoria Ave, Southend-on-Sea SS1 9SB from 7pm to 8pm on Monday 11th July 2022. Roger Hirst, Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner will be joined on the panel by District Commander Ch/Insp Ian Hughes, Essex Police; Southend Fire and Rescue Station Manager, Kerry Taylor and Leigh Fire and Rescue Station Manager, Mark Elliott, both from Essex County Fire and Rescue Service, and Southend Community Safety Manager, Jon Gurel, Southend City Council.
Roger Hirst, Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner said: “Being able to hear directly from local communities about any concerns they have or issues they are experiencing helps us understand what more we can do to make people feel safer.”
“Our public meetings are also a great way to brief residents on how we are working together with a range of partners to deliver the priorities laid out in the Police and Crime Plan and the Fire and Rescue Plan.
“Funding for more police officers, helping those suffering from domestic abuse, protecting vulnerable people and tackling gangs and serious violence are a few examples of how we are making this happen. Attendees can also hear from Essex County Fire and Rescue Service on the excellent prevention work they are doing in Southend to reduce the risk of harm.”
There will also be updates on successes such as reductions in residential burglary by 30% (309 fewer victims), while business and commercial burglary has reduced by 38.6% which equates to 229 fewer offences. Theft of a motor vehicle also reduced by 42% which equates to 208 fewer victims.
However, incidents of theft of pedal cycles, violence with injury and robbery have all increased.
Local initiatives are ongoing including Op Union that was instigated to tackle the increase in crime and disorder on Southend’s waterfront. Meanwhile Op Grip uses ‘Hot Spot’ policing to target locations within the city identified as suffering the highest level of community-based violence. As a result, a significant reduction of 73.5% of reported crime was achieved in the designated ‘Hot Spot’ areas.
To find out more about the work being done to keep our communities safe head over to @PFCCEssex on Facebook for more information and visit www.essex.pfcc.police.uk for details of the Police and Crime Plan and Fire and Rescue Plan.
Go to https://www.essex.pfcc.police.uk/events/ for the full schedule of PFCC events.
