Herefordshire Divisional Policing Plan 2008/09

As we look towards continuing to provide a professional policing service in Herefordshire during the year ahead, we have much to celebrate already as a county experiencing very low levels of crime and disorder. For example, the number of house burglaries has dropped by two-thirds over the last five years. In just this last year the majority of crime categories have seen further reductions.

Much of this is due to the response and investigation undertaken by officers and staff in the Herefordshire Division of West Mercia Constabulary. It would not be achievable, however, without the involvement and support of people in the communities we serve or the professional co-operation of partner agencies. In the coming year we hope to further address any crime, disorder and anti-social behaviour causing concern to the communities across Herefordshire, building on previous successes and learning from those occasions where we have fallen short of the high standards we pursue.

I undertake on behalf of all on the Division to continue to maximise the use of resources with which you entrust us to deliver policing across the county, always listening to, and seeking to address, what is of most concern to the people we serve.

Mark Turner, Chief Superintendent, Divisional Commander

Herefordshire continues to enjoy some significant reductions in crime. Total Crime is down by about 10% over the last three years and house burglary down by three-quarters over five years. At the same time, the Constabulary continues to invest in real local policing teams seeking to address quality of life issues within the communities and reassure them that this is a county which experiences low levels of crime and disorder. In this we seek to work with other agencies and combine to deliver safer and stronger communities - not least of all through the "Partners and Communities Together (PACT)" processes. Many challenges lie ahead in terms of maintaining and improving services with static or reducing funding but I am confident that Herefordshire Division is well placed to rise to meet these. We will continue to listen and respond to local policing needs whether they be immediate emergencies or longer-term problems.

Councillor Bernard Hunt, Chair of the Community Policing Board 

Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership (CDRP)

The CDRP in Herefordshire is known as the Herefordshire Community Safety and Drugs Partnership and consists of a number of statutory agencies committed together to lead and deliver increased community safety across the county. It seeks to do this by engaging with the communities to shape local priorities and then combining the agencies’ skills, knowledge and resources to reduce crime, disorder and drug abuse as well as improving other elements of safety (e.g. fire safety, road safety). The police within Herefordshire remain an integral part of the partnership’s structure and play a significant part in delivering the desired outcomes.

Local Area Agreement (LAA)

The Herefordshire Partnership has a Community Strategy and Local Area Agreement outlining the commitment of all sectors of service-providers to delivering better, sustainable well-being for the county’s communities. This includes economic development, environmental objectives, safer and stronger communities, health objectives and a focus on improving the lives of children and their families. While some of these objectives require more direct commitment from policing than others, we are keen to play our part in the efficient end effective allocation of tight levels of resources to the benefit of the county’s key priorities captured in these documents.

The 2008-09 priorities

The priorities set out below are aimed at tackling the most important issues for local communities and also delivering the ambition for West Mercia.

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