13% Fall In Reported Crime

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Borough Commander thanks his team

This month brought confirmation of our end of year crime figures and I am delighted to inform you that reported crime in Wandsworth fell by more than 13 per cent last year.

We are determined to continue to reduce crime and improve the safety and confidence of everyone living or working in the Borough.

"my sincere thanks to everyone who has worked with us to achieve the tremendous crime reductions"

We are extremely fortunate to be so strongly supported by our local communities and community partners. Teamwork, partnership and collaboration have been pivotal to many of the successes we have achieved during the past month.

In order to make the best use of the policing resources available in Wandsworth, it is vitally important that we task police officers and PCSOs as effectively as possible. Each of the twenty borough wards has a dedicated ward officer (DWO) committed to their specific local area. The DWO also attends a quarterly meeting in the area to agree local policing priorities, which help us to police the issues of most concern to local residents and businesses.

In addition to requests from ward panels we carefully analyse reported crime and disorder together with other criminal intelligence in order to deploy officers to the right places at the right times. All such information improves our ability to police the borough and I urge members of the public to contact us to report crimes whenever they occur. 

During the early part of this year the borough experienced a rise in reports of residential burglary; initial investigations hadn’t identified any suspects but the pattern of reports enabled officers to concentrate on particular areas at particular times in search of the offenders. By mid February this tactic resulted in the arrest of two individuals in the vicinity of two recent burglaries.

Detectives from Wandsworth’s Serious Acquisitive Crime Unit then conducted a painstaking investigation into the suspects’ activities and on 28 April 2014 the two men were charged in connection with a further 39 offences of burglary. This case is a great example of how reports from the public, careful initial reporting and investigation, crime pattern analysis, targeted patrolling and determined detective work can bring excellent policing outcomes.

Teamwork is also central to the Family Recovery Project (FRP), whom I visited on 30 April 2014. Two Wandsworth officers work alongside professionals from a range of partner agencies, with combined expertise in social work, health, housing, education, mental health, employment and training. This innovative multi-agency team works intensively with families with complex needs in order to support them in making long-term, sustainable improvements to their lives. The success of the project was praised by the prime minister, who made a surprise visit to the unit last week with Louise Casey, Director of the Home Office Troubled Families Programme.

On the evening before visiting the FRP, I was very grateful to be invited to attend Wandsworth’s Young Person of the Year awards. Seven commendations and five special awards were presented to some truly inspiring young people by the Mayor of Wandsworth, Councillor Angela Graham. The title of Wandsworth Young Person of the Year went to Anna Gilleard for her dedicated work in raising awareness of mental health issues.

Also amongst the award winners were Wandsworth’s Volunteer Police Cadets for their volunteer work improving safety in your borough, and one of our most senior cadets, Caleb Rookwood, who received the Community Safety Award. The cadets are supported by an extremely dedicated team of officers and volunteers; we are extremely proud of their achievements and grateful for the invaluable support they offer on the borough.

Last month I mentioned a series of drugs raids conducted in Roehampton at the conclusion of a joint operation conducted by the Trident Gang Crime Command working alongside local Wandsworth officers. The raids resulted in 18 arrests and as a result excellent police work by everyone involved, sixteen of the defendants have entered guilty pleas.

They are due to be sentenced later this month. Our gangs team will continue to work closely with our partners to support young people at risk of being drawn into gang activities, helping those who wish to take opportunities to leave the gang environment whilst relentlessly pursuing those who choose to continue offending.

The partnerships we have with other MPS units, with statutory partners, with charities, community groups and individual members of Wandsworth’s communities are incredibly important in helping us to improve the safety of the borough.

I extend my sincere thanks to everyone who has worked with us to achieve the tremendous crime reductionsMay 8, 2014working with us in future, to ensure Wandsworth remains one of the safest places to live in central London.

Richard Smith
Wandsworth Borough Commander

 

May 7, 2014