Fighting crime in face of cut backs (From Echo)
Get involved: send your pictures, video, news and views by texting ECHONEWS to 80360, or email us »
Fighting crime in face of cut backs
7:00am Saturday 4th June 2011 in News
Fighting crime in face of cut backs
CRIME and antisocial behaviour in Essex has plummeted despite growing pressure on the county’s force to cut its spending and staff.
Essex Police continued to smash drug dealing and organised crime gangs, lock up burglars and drive down incidents of yobs causing a nuisance.
In his first quarterly report of the year, Essex Police’s Chief Constable Jim Barker-McCardle revealed the force continued to slash crime despite shedding staff and resources as it makes £45million worth of savings over the next four years.
During 2010/11, the force saw its lowest recorded crime level for 11 years, with 1,351 fewer offences reported to police compared with the previous year.
In the same year, there were nearly 7,000 fewer incidents of antisocial behaviour and by the end of March this year, the force had cut burglaries by four per cent.
Speaking exclusively to this paper, Chief Constable Jim Barker-McCardle said his own research had revealed there were 41,000 fewer crimes recorded in the past year than in 2003 – a 28 per cent reduction.
Mr Barker-McCardle said he was pleased with the latest crime figures, and vowed standards would not slip despite the force having to shed hundreds of support staff as well as not replacing police officers who leave.
He said: “These are extremely challenging and complicated times, so I’m really pleased with how performance has gone over the past 12 months.
“That reflects extremely well on the men and women who are police officers and staff in Essex.
“We have been putting a lot of work into the operational blueprint for policing in Essex, which will be addressing that big challenge of how do you continue to make Essex safer with less money and people?
“I’m still confident Essex is going to be a strong force, not a thin blue line.
“We will still have significant capability, and the priority will continue to be to drive down crime and antisocial behaviour.
“We will still be able to do that, but we have to find smarter ways of working with fewer officers and staff.”
Comments(10)
carnac
says...
9:22am Sat 4 Jun 11
el caballero de la noche wrote:P.C.S.O.
28% reduction yawwwwwwwwn !!!
That is because most people do not bother reporting anything unless their Insurance policy requires it.
Plus far better manipulation of the reported figures.
I feel sorry for the Police and support them but if they will keep releasing figures that most people KNOW is far from the truth, the Police shoot themselves in the foot.
Get rid of PCSO's they are NOT GOOD VALUE FOR MONEY, POORLY TRAINED AND ARE LEADING TO A NO CONFIDENCE ATTITUDE.
The PCSO's are far less effective than the Special Constables who work for free on a voluntary basis and they work after 9pm and can issue ALL the fixed penalty tickets and they can actually arrest people, AND THEY RECEIVE BETTER TRAINING than the PSCO's.
POLICE CHEAP SCAPE OPTION
munx
says...
9:30am Sat 4 Jun 11
They did not bring these crime figures down.
Our local PCSO cause more trouble than good.
He seems to go out of his way "hunting" for trouble and not getting on with the locals. He is trying to earn himself brownie points at any expense. We all now hate him as he is SO provocative and pretty thick.
None of us trust him anymore and they all seem to be on the look out for coffee stops......so beware!
leeharveyosmond
says...
12:39pm Sat 4 Jun 11
I was the victim of an assault and street robbery in Westcliff in 2006. What astonished me, when I turned up at the pub with a black eye the following evening, is that according to an unscientific straw poll I conducted, over 60% of such incidents are not reported -- people don't bother any more because they don't see the point.
Nebs
says...
8:50pm Sat 4 Jun 11
John the resonator
says...
8:35pm Sun 5 Jun 11
leeharveyosmond wrote:I agree entirely.
Given the spate of stories in the Echo recently regarding stabbings, serious sexual assaults, street robberies and so on, especially in Westcliff and Southend, I am not inclined to believe anybody telling me that crime rates are falling.
I was the victim of an assault and street robbery in Westcliff in 2006. What astonished me, when I turned up at the pub with a black eye the following evening, is that according to an unscientific straw poll I conducted, over 60% of such incidents are not reported -- people don't bother any more because they don't see the point.
To be telling us that "crime and antisocial behaviour in Essex has plummeted," in light of what we read every day and either witness or are victims of is just treating us like idiots.
Remember the Hans Christian Andersen story of the Emporor's new clothes?
John the resonator
says...
8:37pm Sun 5 Jun 11
el caballero de la noche wrote:I also agree wholeheartedly with your view about the reason for under reporting of actual crimes. Why bother?
28% reduction yawwwwwwwwn !!!
That is because most people do not bother reporting anything unless their Insurance policy requires it.
Plus far better manipulation of the reported figures.
I feel sorry for the Police and support them but if they will keep releasing figures that most people KNOW is far from the truth, the Police shoot themselves in the foot.
Get rid of PCSO's they are NOT GOOD VALUE FOR MONEY, POORLY TRAINED AND ARE LEADING TO A NO CONFIDENCE ATTITUDE.
The PCSO's are far less effective than the Special Constables who work for free on a voluntary basis and they work after 9pm and can issue ALL the fixed penalty tickets and they can actually arrest people, AND THEY RECEIVE BETTER TRAINING than the PSCO's.
But look out if you put the wrong kind of rubbish in your bags or put them out too early or in the wrong place. They'll getcha sure a hell!
Nebs
says...
11:05pm Sun 5 Jun 11
Trainman
says...
12:02am Tue 7 Jun 11
carnac
says...
6:55pm Tue 7 Jun 11
Cuts will always be made at the bottom of the mire, those at the top, are far too valuable, to be reduced, the trouble is, the ranks have swollen, beyond resources, thus cuts must prevail.
I'm sick of reading about the gripes towards the Police, from people, who frankly, have not a clue, of how things are done, but at least those gripes fall on deaf ears.
el caballero de la noche says...
8:41am Sat 4 Jun 11
That is because most people do not bother reporting anything unless their Insurance policy requires it.
Plus far better manipulation of the reported figures.
I feel sorry for the Police and support them but if they will keep releasing figures that most people KNOW is far from the truth, the Police shoot themselves in the foot.
Get rid of PCSO's they are NOT GOOD VALUE FOR MONEY, POORLY TRAINED AND ARE LEADING TO A NO CONFIDENCE ATTITUDE.
The PCSO's are far less effective than the Special Constables who work for free on a voluntary basis and they work after 9pm and can issue ALL the fixed penalty tickets and they can actually arrest people, AND THEY RECEIVE BETTER TRAINING than the PSCO's.