Agenda item

Report to follow.

Councillor L Fairbrass, Cabinet Member for Community Services, and Penny Button, Head of Safer Neighbourhoods, introduced the Plan and made the following points:

·  The Plan set out proposals for the partnership for the next three years and included an action which would be updated annually.

·  The proposed focus areas were:

o  Reducing offending and reoffending.

o  Safeguarding vulnerability.

o  Community reassurance.

·  75.9% of the 340 responses to the engagement survey on community perceptions and partnership focus areas for 2017-20, agreed or strongly agreed with the three proposed focus areas.

·  The survey was conducted in January 2017 and found that:

o  46.4% of residents responded that they felt safety had deteriorated over that last 12 months.  It was identified that this perception was influenced by ‘groups hanging around’ and ‘how the area looks – eg. Run down’.

o  In order of priority, respondents were most concerned about: dog fouling, litter, nuisance parking, people dealing drugs, intimidating groups and flytipping.

·  There had been a rise in reported neighbourhood crime; the Police advised that this increase was partly due to changes in the recording of crime.  It was also noted that homelessness had increased within the district.

The following points were noted in response to comments and questions from Members:

·  The Community Safety Partnership Working Party (CSPWP) could review nuisance parking as part of its work programme.

·  The CSPWP received a very useful presentation regarding anti-social behaviour; this included a tool kit for Councillors and the public for dealing with antisocial behaviour.  It was suggested that the presentation should also be given the Overview and Scrutiny Panel.

·  Ms Button offered to confirm to Councillor Campbell outside of the meeting how £367,000 of unallocated Disabled Facilities Grants for 2016/17 would be used. This unallocated funding was reported to the Thanet Health and Wellbeing Board on 8 September 2016.

·  Although final figures were not yet available as the projects were still ongoing, the Aspire and Winter Shelter projects were a success and had seen a number of homeless people moved into accommodation.

·  Improved public awareness of the excellent work of the Community Safety Partnership could help to improve the public’s perception of crime levels, however public attendance at community safety events continued to be low.  The partnership was looking at ways to promote its work and encourage public engagement.

·  Many of the dates on the 2017/18 action plan that related to the Probation Service appear to be late in the year.

·  A strategy to reduce graffiti would be formulated once the Plan had been agreed.

·  The aim of the action point regarding the mental health of longer serving offenders post release, was to submit a bid for additional funding.

Councillor Campbell proposed, Councillor Ashbee seconded and Members agreed to recommend the draft Thanet Community Safety Plan for 2017-20 to Cabinet, for recommendation of approval by the Thanet Community Safety Partnership; subject to the following suggestions:

·  That the Plan includes actions to reduce incidence of speeding vehicles and inconsiderate parking

·  That the dates for action by the Probation Service in the action plan be bought forward in the year.

·  That the anti-grafiti strategy be considered by OSP Members once drafted.