FOREST ROW, HARTFIELD, NUTLEY, DANEHILL, FAIRWARP AND HOLTYE

Community Contact Wealden Tuesday 1 April to Tuesday 08 April 2008

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APPEALS, MESSAGES AND NEWS

Chief Constable Martin Richards

Not Chasing Numbers 'For Numbers' Sake'

With 13,200 fewer victims of crime last year, Sussex is a high performing force.

In a message to staff from Chief Constable Martin Richards to mark the start of the new policing year he said:

"Our targets for 2008-09 focus on our six service priorities and include many familiar aims: reducing crime, increasing public satisfaction with the quality of the service we are providing, and further improving priority investigations.

"For me the most significant omission from this year's targets is one for an overall detection rate. Resolving crimes and incidents remains a fundamental part of our public service mission, but in the pursuit of quantity unfortunately quality sometimes suffers.

He added:

"Force performance is about developing and improving our service and not chasing numbers for numbers' sake. That is what our new Force targets for 2008-09 are designed to achieve.

"Our activities will be shaped by our six service priorities:

• Deliver a quality service that is visible and reassures.
• Reduce and detect crime with emphasis on serious and organised crime.
• Respond to calls for assistance.
• Deliver local policing.
• Improve ease of contact and accessibility.
• Develop our organisational capability.

"We are proud of being a high performing force, and one that has achieved significant improvements in recent years. The targets for 2008-09 are about maintaining that drive, and building upon it."

The Force is abandoning its overall detection target from a position of strength. In the twelve months to the start of April, the detection rate was running at more than 32%, against a target of 28%.

More important, overall crime was down by 10.4% - with 13,200 fewer people becoming victims of crime.

Wealden District Commander Monthly message

Chief Inspector Neil Honnor

The end of March is not only the start of British Summer time, it is also the end (and therefore also the beginning) of a new financial and performance plan (target) year. This is why I mentioned in my last message, that this month I would ‘comment, in detail, about what happened over the last plan year, in terms of recorded crime'.

Before I go in to detail, I feel I ought to make a few comments about performance data. In presentations I make to various groups and committees throughout the year, I get a very mixed message when I discuss statistics or quote percentages. Clearly some like the detail and others do not, but crime statistics are one group, albeit a very important group, of measures that actually do tell us something about the society that we live in, and the effectiveness of our work. The police by and large have the monopoly on gathering the evidence to bring people to justice, we also have the control over actioning intelligence and targeting (for enforcement purposes) those prolific offenders who commit the vast majority of crime, for these reasons we have a monopoly on detecting and reducing crime. Being measured against crime rates is therefore highly relevant.

It is I believe, important to verbally acknowledge that we hold a monopoly, but at the same time recognise that we can not, and do not, work alone. Policing is about responding to many challenges, many, if not most, we need the cooperation and collaboration of others to achieve long term solutions. For example we need to work with schools and educationalist to address young peoples needs, thereby reducing victimisation and generating respect: we need to work with social services to help support the vulnerable, and create greater opportunities to allow reporting of previously unreported crime; and town planners to help design safer environments, where people feel safer and respect their environment. But most of all we need to work with the public, in their neighbourhoods, to help develop cohesive communities and enhance the feeling of well being. For these reasons crime statistics don't just tell us about what we are doing, they also reflect our relationships with our partners and communities.

I will go on to say that Wealden is a safe place, and is getting safer, the crime statistics will support my assertions, and are further backed up by victim surveys. None the less we recognise that this is not the ultimate challenge, what we need to go on to do is help people feel safer. Reducing crime and keeping crime risk low is a critical factor in enabling an uplift in the feeling of wellbeing, but matching perception to risk is also of significant importance. This is why we are expanding our targets, and our focus, for the next (08/09) performance year, to include satisfaction rates, and to build on the identification and delivery of very localised priorities and targets.

So how did we do in the performance year just ended 07/08 - Crime is down by 10.6%. There were 6160 crimes in Wealden in 07/08, 731 less victims than in 06/07. Moreover that reduction should not just be considered in isolation, in 06/07 we also returned a reduction in crime, that year by 7.7%. Those year on year reductions have seen Wealden crime rates, per 1000 of the population fall to 44 (per 1000) a year, well below that of the East Sussex average, which sits at over 80 per 1000. When we consider specific crime types, the figures have also dropped. Burglary of peoples houses, is down by over 26%, representing 82 less victims, once again building on the 20% reduction in 06/07, and vehicle crime is down by over 10%.

I am particularly pleased with the reduction in criminal damage (vandalism, graffiti and arson), from a significant increase in the half yearly figures, we have returned a 10.7% reduction in this highly visible and demoralising crime type. This was largely achieved by solid partnership work, such as raising awareness and underpinning responsibility with young people, through work in schools; intervening with key individuals; focusing on ‘hot spot locations; identifying ‘graffiti tags' and through tackling underage drinking.

The crime of robbery is also down, this highly impactive crime is exceptionally rare in our district, and this year it became rarer with a 22% reduction or 6 less victims. Violent crime, of which robbery is a sub set, has also reduced, with 1.6% less cases. Although the reductions in the overall violent crime category, are lesser than other crime types, it is important to highlight that this category is built up from many sub sets, a significant number of which do not involve personal injury! Indeed the element of violent crime that many people fear, that which takes place in the street and causes injury, is but a small part. When that specific element is measured (public place injury cases) we have seen a 17% reduction or 57 less victims.

Our detection rates in Wealden are always challenging, not only is this a low crime area, it is also highly rural and very large, these factors work to present greater difficulties in identifying offenders, than say in a high crime urban area. Not withstanding those challenges we have significantly improved on our performance last year, achieving a detection rate of 27.8% across all crime. In cases of violence we bring to justice 6 out of every 10 offenders. We have also caught and convicted some highly prolific burglars, enabling us to be one of the leading districts in the force with a detection rate of over 20% for house burglary.

As I said earlier Wealden is a safer place to be, it was safer last year and it is safer this year. The challenge that my team and I have for 08/09 is to make people feel safer, whilst maintaining and reducing crime figures even further, and thereby enhancing the feeling of well being in our communities. To progress that objective, our priority, through the work of my neighbourhood policing teams and with the assistance of my partners (particularly those in the Safer Wealden Partnership), is to set up local priority setting groups. As I discussed above, this is an opportunity for local communities, rather than central government to set some of my priorities and targets, and together help achieve them.

Chief Inspector Neil Honnor

Wealden District Commander

Good News

Neighbourhood Policing - It's A Winning Formula

Feedback shows that people in Sussex are noticing the difference neighbourhood policing makes. In the months ahead they will notice even more difference.

Assistant Chief Constable Robin Merrett explained:

"We believe we are on to a winning formula. We already have dedicated neighbourhood specialist teams in all areas throughout the Force. We have now been given funding by the Police Authority to increase this resource by a further 47 police officers in the year ahead.

The message we are getting through consultation and from the Police Authority is that the people of Sussex are keen to see more resources put into local policing. And this is what we are going to deliver."

To read more please click on http://www.sussex.police.uk/news_feed/index.asp?id=23268

East Sussex Fire Authority launches the Volvo FLL-15 Euro 5 fire appliance

East Sussex Fire Authority is introducing fourteen state-of-the-art fire appliances, which will form a key part of the operational response capability and assist in ensuring the continued safety of the communities of East Sussex and the City of Brighton & Hove.

East Sussex Fire & Rescue Service is the first fire & rescue service in the United Kingdom to use the Volvo FLL-15, Euro 5 fire appliance and has made engineering history by securing some of the most advanced technology in the world ! 

To read more click on http://www.esfrs.org/

CRIME REPORT

Vehicle Crime

Contact Information

In an emergency dial 999
For less urgent matters call the Sussex Police Call Handling Centre on 0845 60 70 999 (open 24 x 7).
E-mail Sussex Police to report crime, click on http://www.sussex.police.uk/contact_us.asp
Please quote the relevant serial number and date if you are responding to a reported crime, if not, ask to report a crime and request the serial number.

Information about any type of crime can be given anonymously by calling CRIMESTOPPERS (open 24x7) 0800 555111 or email www.crimestoppers-uk.org/

To find out who your local Police Officers and Police Community Support Officers are and how to contact them go to http://www.sussex.police.uk type in your post code and you’ll now find the names of all your local neighbourhood officers. Click on their pictures and you’ll see their personal profiles and contact details.

Free Home Fire Safety Visits by East Sussex Fire & Rescue Service: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
Fire Safety advice available at http://www.esfrs.org/

Other Contacts
Safer Wealden Partnership: Dave Law Anti Social Behaviour Co-ordinator 0845 6070999 ext. 33231 Email This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Trading Standards: 01323 418200 Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
British Transport Police: 0800 405040

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