Inspector Vanessa Foster, Kent Police, was in attendance to talk about Police presence on the Isle of Sheppey. She said that the new Countywide Neighbourhood Model went live in June 2023 which allocated a dedicated officer to every ward in Swale. The aim was to put neighbourhood policing back as the bedrock in community. So far, the department was only staffed at 50% but vacancies had been advertised.

Inspector Foster went through the Neighbourhood Model initiatives which included:

·         Early identification of vulnerability and exploitation within the community;

·         an online App called ‘My Community Voice’ was launched, this was a two-way communication App between the Police and the community;

·         there was a Neighbourhood Task Force Team which would come into deal with more long term problems;

·         the Child Centred Policing Team focused on the vulnerabilities of youth in the community; and

·         over the summer period a ‘Grip hot-spot’ had been set-up to focus on Sheerness High Street and surrounding areas. Grip hot-spots received Home Office Funding to tackle problems in the area.

Inspector Foster said that every two weeks the deployment of the officers was reviewed to ensure they were in the correct zones to deal with issues as they arose.

The following questions were raised:

A member of the public spoke about drink and drug related problems in the Beachfields Green area. Inspector Foster responded that her team were aware of the problems in that area which was a Public Space Protection Order (PSPO) zone and as such was provided with additional powers. However, she said that the Police and Swale Borough Council (SBC) shared responsibility for that area. Both partners would be tackling the problem collaboratively by issuing Community Protection Warnings (CPW), followed by issuing Community Protection Notices (CPN) to individuals who continue to offend. A CPN gave the power of arrest. There would be metal PSPO signs installed and possibly Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV) cameras installed to monitor the area.

A Member talked about a recent incident at Queenborough Railway Station when 999 was called and it took over an hour for the Police to respond. The officers that responded had come from Maidstone. He also said there was another incident at Queenborough seafront involving jet skis when 999 was called four times, the Coastguard attended, and they also called 999 but there was no response from the Police. Inspector Foster said that the Police Control Room would have transferred the call about the incident on the train to British Transport Police and it would have been their patrol that attended from Maidstone. Regarding the jet ski issue, different partners were working together on this problem and it was a Coastguard led matter. Inspector Foster said that there was a regular Police presence, including the Marine Unit, gathering intelligence on the seafront and docks, but they could not be there all the time.

A Member raised the issues of drug dealing and shop lifting and said there had to be a consequence for those offences. Inspector Foster said that regarding recidivist offenders, they were charged and remanded as much as possible as the issue was taken seriously. The Police needed to get shop owners on-board so that CCTV evidence could be used. She said that Shop Safe Radio had been reintroduced which resulted in quicker responses.

A Member said that domestic abuse was a problem in his Ward, and he was aware that victims did not feel comfortable reporting incidents to the Police as they believed they would not be taken seriously. Inspector Foster said that the Vulnerability Department was heavily funded and was a high priority for the Police. She said she was sad to hear that people did not feel comfortable reporting incidents to the Police but there were other agencies they could speak to instead. Inspector Foster said that even if victims dropped charges, the Police would go ahead and prosecute on evidence. She said she would like to speak to individuals, if they were willing, who had not wanted to come forward to report incidents of domestic abuse so she could carry out some service recovery with the Vulnerability Department.

A Member asked about the current ratio of beat officers to wards with the current 50% staffing level. Inspector Foster confirmed that some beat officers were currently covering up to three wards. She went on to reassure Members and residents that her team were committed to doing their best to prioritise the vulnerable in the community on the Isle of Sheppey and Swale.

A Member said that residents in her ward were concerned about the time officers were spending off the Isle of Sheppey when they had to take an offender to the custody suite in Medway. Inspector Foster agreed it was a frustration, but it had been the Police and Crime Commissioner’s strategy to close the custody suites at Sheerness and Sittingbourne.

A Member said that there were a number of issues in his ward such as illegal and noisy exhausts during the early hours, speeding, not wearing seat belts, drink/drug driving, anti-social behaviour, vandalism and arson that were not being addressed by the constant changes to Police structures. Inspector Foster said that she had the best officers on the ground within the current constraints. She said that all incidents must be reported and agreed there was a lot of work to do.

The Chair thanked Inspector Foster for taking the time to come and talk to the Area Committee.