Safer Streets Weekly Roundup: Gosport, Blyth, Swansea, Plymouth

It has been another great week of action to make our streets safer across the UK. From Gosport to Swansea, and Plymouth to Blyth, we’ve seen police officers and wider law enforcement work to make our streets and roads safer.

Arrest of the Week

Special Constables are volunteers who have the full powers of a police officer. This week saw Special Constables in London stop a vehicle that had tried to avoid officers. On stopping and searching the vehicle, officers found a pepper spray canister – illegal in the UK – and promptly seized the pepper spray and arrested the person in possession of it. Great work by volunteers playing a critical role in making the streets of London safer.

Stop and Search

Police in Gosport took a knife off the street following a stop and search and in the immediate aftermath of a moped being reported stolen. In this case, two boys, aged 12 and 15 were arrested. Critics will slam the cops for arresting children, but when children are involved in crime – such as stealing mopeds or carrying knives – it’s vital that they are stopped in their tracks, and the opportunity is taken to get them to turnaround their lives. Brilliant work by the local police! Thank you!

Traffic Stops and Roads Policing

Imagine stopping a van, and opening it up to find a stolen steamroller inside? Beside whether it is even safe to carry such a load in the back of a van, it is great to see that these Nottinghamshire officers got the van stopped, and rightly arrested the driver. Hopefully the stolen items have been returned to their rightful owners, and anyone involved in the theft has been or will be dealt with robustly by the courts.

Warrant and Raids

Police in Swansea raided an address in Clydach, and made an arrest after finding drugs, weapons, and other items. It’s vital that when residents report suspicious behaviour or problem premises, that the police are supproted to take swift action – and to send a clear message that criminality is not tolerated. Hopefully this raid made a positive difference for local residents, and that the person concerned might take the hint and turn their back on crime.

Foot Patrol

The public love seeing police officers out on foot patrol – and all the more so when there is an iconic beat duty or custodian helmet on display. In this case, PCSO Debbie Hollinson and Chief Superintendent Matt Longman were out and about in Plymouth. It’s good to see a senior officer taking the time to spend time at the coalface with those who know the local streets and issues like the back of their hand. Keep up the good work in Plymouth!

Cleaner Streets are Safer Streets

What better way to make the point that cleaner streets are safer streets, than the police making a referral to probation to get part of their local patch cleaned up? This week’s example from Redbridge shows what a difference Community Payback can make when harnessed towards visible clean-ups, rather than being activities hidden behind closed doors. Hopefully this might just be the beginning of more regular joint work to clean up the streets and cut crime!

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