What Our Communities Have Told Us
We want all citizens to have a genuine say in how they are policed. By maintaining good relationships and a regular dialogue with our public, we will be able to provide a service that continually responds to their diverse and changing needs.
In developing this plan we have taken into account the views of our communities through a variety of mechanisms including:
Crime and Safety Partnership Survey
The annual West Mercia Crime and Safety Partnership Survey was posted to 57,900 residents. Just under 11,500 people responded. In addition, a web-based young people’s Crime and Safety Survey was carried out in 2007, involving people aged 10-15 years. The survey findings show that the following issues are perceived to be the biggest problem in respondents’ neighbourhoods:
| Adults (% agree is a problem) | Young People (% agree is a problem) |
| 1. Speeding traffic (73%) 2. Groups loitering (73%) 3. Under-age drinking (70%) 4. Vandalism/graffiti (65%) 5. Rubbish/litter (63%) | 1. Groups loitering (75%) 2. Vandalism/graffiti (68%) 3. Under-age drinking (67%) 4. Drunk people causing problems (62%) 5. People using drugs (61%) |
When adult respondents were asked which issue needed to be addressed as a priority, the top five issues were as follows:
1. Speeding traffic (22%)
2. Vandalism / graffiti (20%)
3. Groups loitering (20%)
4. People dealing drugs (18%)
5. Under-age drinking (17%)
User Satisfaction Surveys
We also conduct telephone surveys with people who have been a victim of crime to seek their views about the quality of service provided. We use the information from the surveys to improve the quality of service we provide where it is shown to be necessary.
Partners and Communities Together (PACT)
To make our services more visible and accessible to communities we have established 145 local policing areas, each with its own dedicated team. To assist them in identifying and understanding local crime and safety issues, the teams use a range of consultation and engagement methods. Branded across the force as PACT – Partners and Communities Together – methods include meetings, surgeries, environmental visual audits, face-to-face surveys and consultation postcards. Further information about local policing teams in your area, including PACT meetings, can be found by accessing the local policing pages of the Constabulary’s website.
Police/Community Consultative Groups
These groups met regularly in public across the force area throughout 2007. The issues identified were reported to Policing Boards and broadly reflected those identified by the Crime and Safety Survey.
Consultation Events
In developing the 2008/09 Policing Plan, we circulated the broad principles of the plan to partners, business and community representatives and invited individuals to attend either of two consultation events.
As an example, three of the issues raised at these events are reproduced below, together with an illustration of how they have been incorporated into the plan.
1. The need to support schemes helping people, in particular young people, to reduce re-offending.
Included within the priority: "Working in partnership with all the criminal justice agencies involved, we will implement a more comprehensive approach to dealing with youth crime across the Criminal Justice System, from early intervention through to reducing re-offending.”
2. Late night violence and disorder in our market towns on Friday and Saturday nights, specifically Bridgnorth and Oswestry, which have a culture of large numbers coming into the towns and heavy drinking. Request made for higher police visible presence after midnight in these towns on Friday and Saturday night.
Included within the existing priority: "Provide an effective response to incidents of anti social behaviour and disorder"
3. Problems of underage drinking fuelled by the availability of alcohol and lack of things for young people to do.
Included in the Better Outcome of Tackling Crime: “We will aim to reduce drug use and alcohol misuse, especially among young people”
Thank you
We are very grateful to people who take the time to respond to our requests for feedback. All of the information we collect is considered carefully throughout our planning process and has influenced the priorities within this plan.
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