Issued by City of York Council
City of York Council Cabinet will consider the council’s initial response to the draft Police and Crime Plan – published by the new Police and Crime Commissioner for North Yorkshire Julia Mulligan – at a meeting on the 5 March.
The Police and Social Responsibility Act 2011 places a responsibility on the Police and Crime Commissioner to produce a Police and Crime Plan for the force area, setting out the strategic priorities for her term of office, between 2013-17.
The council’s priorities in relation to community safety, are embedded within the Council Plan under its Building Stronger Communities and Protect Vulnerable People priorities. They are also set out in the Safer York Partnership Community Safety Plan. Work has now been undertaken to identify where the council is in a position to provide local support to the delivery of the Police and Crime Plan and Cabinet will be asked to agree the priorities identified and to commit to further work by the council in order to provide a full response to the Plan.
The initial response report outlines how the council supports the plan priorities by:
- Reducing Harm, through greater collaboration with neighbouring forces and existing city partnerships to tackle crime and provide co-ordinated support to victims;
- People First, through shared intelligence and information at a local level and a greater focus on early intervention and prevention via initiatives such as the Safer Neighbourhood Teams;
- More with Less and Fit for the Future, in supporting opportunities for shared and co-location of services;
- To Drive Justice, supporting the reduction of reoffending and exploring opportunities for restorative justice such as the current Community Payback scheme; and
- Police UK, in working collaboratively to provide a city-wide response for the York community in the event of an emergency.
Cllr Daf Williams, Cabinet Member for Crime and Community Safety, said: “We are pleased to have the opportunity to respond to consultation on the Draft Police and Crime Plan 2013-2017. As a Local Authority, we have a strong and well established relationship with North Yorkshire Police which extends to before the Crime and Disorder Act established a statutory requirement for police and local authorities to work together.
“We are delighted that North Yorkshire Police is the safest force area in the country. We believe that City of York Council has made a significant contribution to that achievement and look forward to working closely with the Police and Crime Commissioner in ensuring that we continue to retain this position.
“Overall, the plan sets out a balanced approach to service improvement within the police. Given the year on year success in reducing crime across the force, it is crucial that the emphasis changes to develop a greater understanding of the causes of crime and anti-social behaviour and putting in place early intervention and prevention measures alongside any response. Working in partnership is crucial to this approach and close collaborative working with local authorities and the community safety partnerships will help to ensure the successful delivery of the plan.”
The consultation on the Police and Crime Plan ends on 18 March 2013.
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