Agenda and minutes

The Chair welcomed members and guests to the meeting which was sitting as the Crime and Disorder Scrutiny Committee.

RESOLVED that the minutes of the previous meeting held on 27 October 2020 be confirmed.

Please note that, in accordance with the Members' Code of Conduct, when declaring interests members must disclose the existence and nature of the interest, and whether it is a disclosable pecuniary interest (DPI) or personal and/or pecuniary.

No declarations of interest were received.

RESOLVED that the press and public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the following item(s) of business because it was likely that if members of the public were present there would be a disclosure to them of ‘exempt information’ as defined by Section 100I and Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972.

RESOLVED that the press and public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the following item(s) of business because it was likely that if members of the public were present there would be a disclosure to them of ‘exempt information’ as defined by Section 100I and Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972.

Jon McAdam, Chief Superintendent, Lincolnshire Police, presented the Police Performance Overview for Lincoln which covered the period up to 30 June 2021.

Members discussed the content of the report in further detail, asked questions of Jon McAdam and received relevant responses thereon.

During discussions held Councillor Strengiel highlighted that prior to COVID he had joined the local PCSO for regular walks in his area and that in the 1990’s monthly meetings were held between Lincolnshire Police and Elected Members at Lincoln Police HQ. He noted that it would be helpful for this practice to be re-introduced sometime in the future, resources permitting.

RESOLVED that the contents of the report be noted with thanks by members.

It was noted at this point in the proceedings that the press and public were permitted to re-join the meeting as there was no further ‘exempt information’ to be discussed, although there were no press/public present in the public gallery this evening.

(Chief Superintendent Jon McAdams left the meeting at this stage.)

(Councillor Strengiel left the meeting before the start of this item, he requested to be notified by the Democratic Services Officer on any updates given that were not detailed within the officer’s report, which she agreed to send on.)

Simon Colburn, Assistant Director, Health and Environmental Services:

a)    presented an overview of the current level of Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB) across the city, to highlight the current and arising issues and to appraise the Committee of the work and projects that were being undertaken across the city to reduce and address ASB

b)    reported that the Public Protection and Anti-Social Behaviour (PPASB) Team dealt with a wide variety of complaints including ASB, noise, environmental and animal issues, and received in excess of 2,500 requests for service each year across the city

c)    explained that the Lincoln Intervention Team was launched in October 2018 and currently had funding until December 2021

d)    advised that the team which included an ASB Outreach Officer, Mental Health Nurse Outreach Officer, Addaction Outreach Officer, and a Team Coordinator was working to reduce on-street Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB) by holistically working with individuals to deal with the root cause of their behaviour

e)    referred to Appendix A (detailed under Section B of the report) which outlined a number of tools of power it was possible for the team to utilise where appropriate, and proportionate to resolve complaints; both teams worked hard to resolve issues informally and use a range of techniques and subtle enforcement to resolve issues early, however, in some cases enforcement action was required

f)     referred also to Appendices B and C (detailed under Section B of the report) which gave relevant data on the actions of the Lincoln Intervention Team in 2020 and 2021

g)    highlighted that both teams also worked with partners such as Lincolnshire Police to address public safety concerns and where applicable to ensure residents could live free from ASB and crime

h)    advised that a police officer was permanently in residence at City Hall to support the teams

i)     reported on the impacts of the Covid 19 Pandemic on both teams which had meant home working for the PPASB Team and reduced visits to keep the team and the public safe; for the Intervention Team this meant delivery of their outreach service under very challenging circumstances, the nature of their support provided had been different with issues experienced in the city also having changed

j)     advised that from 1 April 2020 to 31 March 2021 the PPASB Team received 2518 requests for assistance across all of their services including ASB, noise nuisance, animal related concerns, environmental issues such as fly tipping and pests

k)    reported that although the service had seen an overall reduction of 9% cases compared to 2019/20, reports of ASB and noise nuisance had increased significantly as detailed within tables 1 and 2 at paragraph 4.3 of her report

l)     gave further detail within the report covering the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

In light of Sarah Loftus, Chief Executive of Lincoln BIG unfortunatelybeing unable to attend tonight’s meeting, the following documents were presented on her behalf:

·         Covid Activity- this showed the activity that Lincoln BIG undertook: Pages 5-7 of Annual Report 2019-20

·         Annual Report – this showed the activity ongoing in 2021/22 (Annual Report 2021/22. Priority 1: Welcome most relevant to tonight’s meeting.)

Lincoln BIG also highlighted a number of safety issues facing the city having arisen during Covid and the re-opening of the road map:

·         More graffiti

·         Cycling/E-Scooter problem on the High Street

·         Lack of visible policing in the city

·         Buskers- the policy presented this evening had been updated and people were encouraged to follow it

·         Return of homelessness and beggars and the need to reconnect and work closely with the Intervention Team at City of Lincoln Council.

RESOLVED that the content of the documented presentation be noted.