Agenda item

Francesca Bell, Acting Team Leader PPASB

a.    presented the overall performance of the Public Protection and Anti-Social Behaviour service over the last 18 months

b.    advised that the service had been in high demand and customer satisfaction had remained good especially when considering the enforcement nature of the services

c.    referred to paragraph 3 of the report and gave an overview of the core services which provided both proactive and reactive actions designed to protect individuals, the community and the amenity of the city

d.    presented statistics from the last 12 months covering the following areas:

                                          i.    Anti-Social Behaviour

                                        ii.    Noise

                                       iii.    Animals

                                       iv.    Pests/Condition of Gardens

                                        v.    Fly Tipping

                                       vi.    Licensing consultations

                                      vii.    Littering Fixed Penalty Notices

e.    gave an overview of the following projects that had been implemented over the last 12 months

                      i.        Implementation of the Noise Policy

                    ii.        Implementation of the Animal Policy

                   iii.        Permanent Position of Littering Enforcement Officer Approved

                   iv.        PSPO

                    v.        Student Intake

f.     advised that the PPASB team had continued to work closely with the Police, Housing, P3 and the University to tackle issues of anti-social behaviour across the City

g.    advised that over the next 12 months the team were likely to see overall demand remain stable in the line with previous years and predicted that the team may need to focus on the following issues:

·         Fly tipping was a significant problem in some areas of the City

·         Hate crime and modern day slavery may increase due to public and professional awareness of the subject increasing

·         ASB reports may increase or shift focus onto city centre issues such as begging, rough sleeping, and drug/alcohol consumption.

Francesca Bell concluded her report by asking members of the committee for their comments and questions.

Question: Expressed concern over the increase in the use of intoxicating substances in the City and asked how other Councils had dealt with the issue.

Francesca Bell responded: It was a complex issue that was not unique to Lincoln. A balanced approach between enforcement and support was needed to tackle the issues. The Council was working on a project with P3 which aimed to tackle entrenched rough sleepers across Lincolnshire.

Question: Retailers had reported to Lincoln BIG the issues on the high street, they paid large business rates and needed to see an increase in Police presence.

Chief Superintendent Mark Housley responded: The individuals causing issues on the high street had a number of complex issues that needed to be addressed. Enforcement was not the answer, the cause of the problem needed to be treated not just the symptoms. A multi-agency group including representatives from Housing, mental health and the 3^rd sector needed to work together to understand the issues and tackle them holistically. The Police and Crime Commissioner had called a multi-agency meeting to tackle the issue and this would take place next week. There would also be a nominated Neighbourhood Police Officer to work in the City Centre.

Question: When would the Neighbourhood Police Officer start?

Chief Superintendent Mark Housley responded: Sometime in the next 6 weeks. A lot of their time would be spent dealing with shoplifters.

Steve Bird responded: The new state of the art CCTV system would help with shoplifters, the shops would be able to link into the system.

Question: Would the new CCTV system be advertised?

Steve Bird responded: Once completed it would be advertised on social media, and a press release to make the public aware. We would also be inviting businesses and groups in to look at the system.