Over the past fortnight I have been contacted by a number of constituents in Upminster and Cranham who have concerns about crime levels in Upminster, particularly thefts and muggings around the shopping area, park and station.

Following this correspondence, I requested a meeting with Jason Gwillim, our Borough Police Commander and we had a long and wide-ranging discussion on 9 March which covered not just recent incidents in Cranham and Upminster, but the tri-borough policing structure, officer numbers across the Met, the ongoing work of the Police with the Council regarding anti-social behaviour and the way in which the Police are communicating with the borough’s residents, particularly following serious incidents. You can find a copy of the update I had issued following this meeting pasted below.

When preparing to meet the Borough Commander, my team and I also began to make arrangements for a further meeting for those residents who had been in touch that would allow them to raise their concerns directly with senior and local police officers. This meeting took place last Friday on 16 March and I am grateful to the Upminster Baptist Church for kindly hosting this at short notice.

Attending the meeting were Sergeant Ian Bargus, PC Wybrow and PCSO Andrews from the Upminster Ward Team as well as Neighbourhoods Inspector Jenny Moore. Also present were Cllr. Jason Frost, Deputy Cabinet Member for Community Safety and local ward members Cllrs. Van Den Hende and Ower. During the meeting, residents were able to outline their concerns and raise any queries directly with the officers and I am pleased that a full and frank conversation followed.

Though this is not an exhaustive list of all the points raised, a summary of key issues is set out below:

Residents outlined their view that there had been an increase in muggings in Upminster

• Sgt. Bargus advised that police crime statistics did not support the idea that there had been an increase in reported muggings in Upminster, and that it remains a low-crime area. He advised that police can only respond to the crimes that they are informed of directly and are unable to respond to reports of crime made on social media.
• Some residents outlined their concerns that the crimes were not being reported and advised of deficiencies within the 101 reporting system. Sgt. Bargus advised that the Police are aware of issues with the 101 number and I reported that the Borough Commander had confirmed that significant additional resources are being provided to ensure that the service operates better. Sgt. Bargus also suggested that residents may wish to report crimes directly to the Upminster Ward Team (unless in an emergency, in which case the 999 number would be most appropriate) or report crime online. https://www.met.police.uk/report/how-to-report-a-crime/ 
• Residents commented that not many people were aware that they could make direct contact with the ward teams or how to contact them.
• Sgt. Bargus advised that residents could find the contact details of ward teams on the Met Police website and encouraged them to help spread awareness of this by word of mouth or on social media. They hold regular meetings including the ‘Cuppa with a Coppa’ event, but Sgt. Bargus said a balance needed to be struck between being accessible and getting on with their policing duties. Havering Police would also be producing a newsletter updating on local police activities and contact details which would be available online as well as being displayed in libraries and community centres. Their ward page can be found here - https://www.met.police.uk/your-area/havering/upminster/?tab=LocalActivity
• Sgt. Bargus stressed that reporting of crime is essential so that police can identify trends and allocate resources as appropriate.
• Residents commented that younger residents in schools and colleges may be fearful to report crimes in case perpetrators have links within those schools/colleges. Sgt. Bargus advised that the Police have schools officers who can increase visibility in schools/colleges and engage with students in such instances.

Resources allocated to Havering via the East Area pathfinder and wider Metropolitan Police structures:

• Sgt. Bargus advised that police numbers in Havering remained the same following the creation of the East Area pathfinder.
• All council wards are allocated the same Safer Neighbourhood Team of two Dedicated Ward Officers and one Police and Community Support Officer. These officers’ sole responsibilities are within their ward and when large scale emergency operations are ongoing, such as a terrorist incident, these are the last officers called upon to support such operations.
• Ward officers post images and maps demonstrating their patrol route followed during their shift on social media so that residents can see where they have patrolled.
• I had previously highlighted concerns regarding the declining performance in police response times following the launch of the East Area Tri-Borough policing model with the Borough Commander, the Mayor of London and also the Met Commissioner. Performance has now returned to the same standards as before the tri-borough model was introduced.
• Residents also noted that the closure of Hornchurch Police station would not be conducive to a strong local police force and I outlined my correspondence to the Mayor of London, including a suggestion that could raise the funds required to keep the station open, which was declined by the Mayor. Cllr. Ramsey as Leader of the Council has commenced proceedings for a judicial review of the Mayor’s consultation on this proposal and I am supporting him in this.
• There was also a discussion on the number of police officers within the Met and I informed the group of the Borough Commander’s earlier comments that numbers had stabilised at approximately 30,000 officers. I also advised of discussions I had had with both the Home Secretary and Met Commissioner, Cressida Dick, about whether police had the resource they require. Following those discussions, further monies of £50 million were granted to counter-terrorism to ease the pressure on the Met and the Mayor of London was given the power to raise his precept to provide additional resource to the Met if he felt it necessary. We had a wider discussion about the way in which the area and London are changing, including in schooling and housing, and the differing types of crimes being reported to police. Police are trying to keep on top of this change in demand and are receiving improved equipment such as body-worn cameras and laptops to assist in their work.

Crimes taking place within shops

• Cllr. Ower advised of the concerns of local shopkeepers who had reported that groups of youths were frequently entering stores and acting in a threatening manner. A shopkeeper had been confronted by these youths and on one occasion a knife had been drawn.
• Sgt. Bargus advised that improvements to Shopwatch, now called Safe & Sound will soon be delivered to Upminster, enabling improved radio communications with other shops and local police. This will also enable better contact between shopkeepers and the CCTV control room, improving the police’s ability to collect CCTV evidence of any incidents and alerting people nearby to any problems at the time.
• The next meeting for Safe & Sound is on 21 April 2018 and I would advise any shopkeepers interested in attending to contact the Safer Neighbourhood Team for further details.
• There is a Streetwatch team of local volunteers, one of whom was present in the meeting, who aim to improve people’s sense of safety by patrolling the area, particularly the park.
• Sadly, I understand that following this meeting, on Saturday 17 March that there was a knifepoint robbery at the nearby Londis store on Corbets Tey Road. I have discussed this matter with the police who have advised that this is subject to an ongoing investigation and that they have issued an appeal for further information from witnesses. The appeal, and contact details for the team investigating this case, can be viewed at: https://twitter.com/MPSUpminster/statuses/976084957826306048/

Use of Transport

• One resident advised of a recent incident where a group of youths had mugged two youngsters and then fled the scene by bus. Sgt. Bargus confirmed that the police had two active investigations including one into this incident and another involving another present at the meeting, and that enquiries were being made for CCTV images from the bus.
• Another resident advised of an incident last year where her son was attacked in similar circumstances and they had attempted to get CCTV images from transport.
• Cllr. Van den Hende outlined her view that in being at the end of the line and combining the tube and C2C, Upminster station may be attracting youngsters involved in criminal activity who have free travel passes and suggested that improved links between ward officers and the British Transport Police (BTP) might help. Over the weekend Cllr. Jason Frost, Deputy Cabinet Member for Community Safety, contacted the Council’s Community Safety and Transport Planning Departments to see if improvements can be made to the Council’s links with BTP and I supported this in my own representations.
• Sgt. Bargus advised the meeting that he was in consultation with BTP to get an aerial link installed at Upminster station which would enable the improved communications (Shopwatch) for shopkeepers referred to earlier.

Burglary

• Sgt. Bargus advised that officers across the East Area, including two from Havering, have been seconded to Operation Mexico which has been formed to tackle burglary.
• This work has been highly successful and Inspector Moore advised that there has been a 28% reduction in burglary rates and 38 arrests in the East Area since Operation Mexico.

For me, the key message from this meeting was the importance of all crimes being reported to the police, whether immediately, over the 101 telephone number or the new online reporting system. Police can only respond to crimes that are reported to them and without the data that this generates they are unable to develop a clear picture of the issues and direct resources accordingly. The data that this generates will also assist our Assembly Member, Keith Prince, in making the case for further resources to the Mayor of London, and me in making representations to the Met Commissioner and Home Secretary in my meetings with them. 

Email update following meeting with Borough Commander – sent Monday 12 February

I met the Borough Commander on Friday to discuss these and other concerns from elsewhere in the constituency. We had a long and wide-ranging discussion, covering not just events in Cranham and Upminster, but the tri-borough policing structure, officer numbers across the Met, the ongoing work of the Police with the Council regarding anti-social behaviour and the way in which the Police are communicating with the borough’s residents, particularly following serious incidents.

On the topic of the tri-borough policing structure, the Borough Commander reiterated his view that the teething issues with the new model have now been ironed out with Police response times to both severe and emergency calls back to their previous levels. The Borough Commander also advised how, following an initial decline since 2008, overall officers numbers for the Met are stabilising at approximately 30,000 officers and we discussed how the additional powers granted to Police and Crime Commissioners to raise funds for their Police force will help this further. We discussed the provision of information to the public following serious or notable incidents locally, such as the recent Harold Hill explosion, and the Borough Commander advised that he will look into how he and his team can speed-up the sharing of information to the public.

I informed the Borough Commander that there would appear to be a growing sense that crime is increasing in Upminster and of the accounts of various recent incidents as have been reported on the Upminster Community Facebook Group. The Borough Commander was receptive to residents’ concerns and, whilst pointing to statistics indicating that, overall, crime has fallen in recent months Upminster, he was eager to address recent incidents but also to reduce the fear of crime in the area, which can have a strong impact upon a community.

Whilst I was pleased to note that crime had fallen in a number of categories, such as criminal damage and burglary, I was alarmed to see that there has been an increase in incidences of violence against the person and theft & handling offences and I expressed this concern to the Borough Commander. I presented to the Borough Commander a copy of each of your emails over the last week on this issue and we discussed the possibility of hosting a meeting where we would be able to discuss these concerns in a more open environment with other key stakeholders present. Arrangements for this meeting are still being finalised and I hope to be able to share further information regarding this meeting in the coming days.

A number of residents had queried how many officers are tasked with patrolling Upminster. The Borough Commander outlined how each Council ward in London is allocated two Dedicated Ward Officers (DWOs) and one dedicated Police and Community Support Officer (PCSO). In addition to this, the Borough has five further Ward Officers available to be diverted to a given ward to respond to a particular issue or operation.

Another issue which a number of constituents had raised was the length of time it can take to report an incident using the non-emergency 101 number. The Borough Commander advised that the Metropolitan Police force was aware that there had been issues in the efficiency of this service and it was completing a recruitment drive to increase the number of operators on this line substantially.

Finally, for those constituents who had written in reference to specific incidents, please be assured that these incidents were raised directly with the Borough Commander and, where crime numbers have been provided, we will be able to provide updates relating to these incidents in due course.

With best wishes,

Julia