Policing
Police and Crime Plan 2017-2021
Anthony Stansfeld, the Police and Crime Commissioner for Thames Valley, has recently published his new five year Police and Crime Plan which sets out the priorities for policing and other crime reduction organisations across the Thames Valley, including the response to regional and national threats.
This new Plan consists of five broad strategic priorities which are:
- Vulnerability– Managing demand on services through working together with a particular focus on mental health, elder abuse, hidden abuse, and the criminal justice experience for victims of domestic and sexual abuse
- Prevention and Early Intervention– Improving safeguarding in both the physical space and virtual space including tackling cyber crime, road safety, peer on peer abuse, hate crime and female genital mutilation (FGM)
- Reducing Re-offending– Targeting and managing harm and risk with a focus on substance misuse, violence involving weapons and offender management including perpetrators of domestic abuse Serious Organised
- Crime and Terrorism– Improving the local response including increased public awareness, promoting a ‘dare to share’ culture, and preventing violent extremism and the exploitation of vulnerable people.
- Police Ethics and Reform– Increasing the pace of change with a focus on improved support for victims, accelerated uptake of new technology, and improving the perceptions of police among young people
The priorities and aims in the Plan will be addressed in greater detail through the delivery plans of Thames Valley Police, the Office of the PCC and other partner service delivery plans, particularly Community Safety Partnerships (CSPs).
The plan was developed using a broad range of information including the evaluation of research documents, analysis of crime trends, horizon scanning to identify future trends and consultation with partners including the police and local authorities.
It was also informed by the views of the nearly 5000 residents of Thames Valley, including over 1000 young people, who took part in the PCCs policing and crime survey in 2016.
“I am pleased to be launching the new Police and Crime Plan which sets out my priorities for keeping communities across the Thames Valley safe. The plan seeks to address current and emerging threats from crime over the next five years. I have kept my strategic priorities broad to allow organisations to interpret them to meet local needs but I will be working closely with partner organisations to understand how they will address the issues identified. The demands on policing and community safety concerns have changed over the last few years and my new plan reflects this. Issues such as mental health are placing a growing demand on police and partners, as has the increased reporting of domestic and sexual abuse. Hidden and/ or newly emerging crimes such as female genital mutilation, hate crime, honour based violence and cyber crime also need to be tackled. It is important that we work together to raise awareness of these crimes as well as bring to justice the offender and support the victims. To effectively take on this work there is a need for police to take advantage of new technologies, while at the same time continuing to foster the trust of the people they serve. My recent survey showed that adults were largely satisfied with the service provided by the police, however, young people’s perception of police was less favourable and I would like to see more work with young people to address this. As the recent tragedy in London has unfortunately highlighted terrorism remains a very real threat and the work in preventing violent extremism will continue. Serious organised crime must also be tackled and very vulnerable people, who are exploited as a consequence, protected. My new Plan focuses on many new and emerging issues for policing but more traditional crimes such as household burglary and rural crime will also remain a priority. Tackling new demand, as well as maintaining support for the investigation of more traditional crimes, won’t be an easy task. However, as recent Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) inspections have shown, Thames Valley Police is a force we can be proud of and I have faith that they will be able to rise to this challenge and continue to safeguard the communities of Thames Valley.”
- Anthony Stansfeld, Police and Crime Commissioner
The full plan can be found on the PCC website
'Victims First' launches to support victims of crime
The Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) for Thames Valley, Anthony Stansfeld, has today launched his Victims First brand and website. Victims First is the new overarching title for the PCCs work in providing support, increasing accessibility and improving services for victims of crime across Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire.
The first initiative under Victims First is a new online resource which has advice on what to do and how to get help if you’ve been a victim of crime, including information on what you should expect from the police and other criminal justice agencies if you report the crime.
The focal point of the website is a directory which allows victims to find relevant support to help them cope and recover from the impact of the crime. Members of the public will be able to use the website to refer themselves directly to the PCCs own support services, using the online form, or find information and contact details for other organisations. This support is available regardless of whether or not the victim has reported the crime to the police.
The website has information and advice to help people to recognise hidden crimes such as modern slavery, domestic abuse, including coercive control, and hate crime. Victims First also provides a third party reporting mechanism for hate crime so that those who don’t want to report directly to the police can either complete a reporting form on the website or on 0300 1234 148.
The PCC has undertaken extensive work to improve support for victims of crime, including commissioning new services for young victims, victims of sexual violence, a victim-led restorative justice service and a local support service to assist other victims.
Victims First encompasses all of this work and will expand over the coming year, with the PCC reviewing his services to ensure that victims continue to have appropriate support in place, are able to easily access it and that agencies, including the police, are victim-focussed.
“I recently launched my new Police and Crime Plan which reaffirmed my commitment to making sure that victims have access to the support they need to cope and recover from the impact of crime. The launch of Victims First and the website is a key milestone in my work in this area and will allow victims to easily find information and support in one place. I believe it will be a valuable resource not just for victims but also for people and organisations that come into contact with victims of crime who can now use the website to find and refer people to an appropriate service. “Victims First will continue to develop over the next year with plans to create a single referral doorway, a specialist counselling service and community signposting points with the aim of simplifying access and improving support for victims.”
- Anthony Stansfeld, Police and Crime Commissioner
The Victims First website can be found here
2016/17 Crime Statistics For South Oxfordshire & Vale of White Horse
Thames Valley Police has released crime statistics which cover the past twelve months.
The latest figures show that there were 138,710 crimes reported across Oxfordshire, Berkshire and Buckinghamshire from 1st April 2016 until 31st March 2017. This is a 7.2% increase to the previous year (2015/16) where there were 129,449 reported crimes within the same time frame.
Of these 9,895 crimes were reported in South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse Local Police Area (LPA), a rise of 4.0% on last year.
The increase in crime reports is reflected nationally (ONS Crime Survey of England and Wales ), and is largely attributed to improvements in compliance with National Crime Recording Standards, following recommendations made by HMIC in 2014.
Overall crime levels in Thames Valley still remain low compared with five and ten years ago. There were 66,976 fewer crimes recorded in this timeframe compared with five years ago (205,686), and 8,357 fewer recorded offences compared with ten years ago (147,067).
“Whilst we have seen some increase in reports of crime this year, this is similar to the national trend. Despite this, South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse continues to be a very safe place to live and work. The future is challenging and our priority is constantly trying to match the right resources to our areas of greatest harm and demand whilst seeking to maintain and enhance public confidence in policing. Our officers work hard with communities to prevent crime and we are encouraging people to take simple steps that will protect them, their property and businesses. Campaigns such as #Protectyourworld in the Autumn and our February rural crime campaign are good examples of how we have raised awareness and confidence in our communities to report incidents to us. I would like to take this opportunity to thank my staff and our partner agencies for their hard work over the last year and most importantly extend my gratitude to our communities for their continued support.”
- Superintendent Rory Freeman, LPA Commander for South and Vale