New neighbourhood policing model for Lincolnshire due to cuts in PCSOs

It comes after the Chief Constable Chris Haward felt forced to cut around half the number of PCSOs in the county due to a funding shortfall.

The new model ensures that they have maintained Community Beat Managers (CBMs), sergeants and inspectors dedicated to every area. The numbers of police officers in neighbourhood policing have also been bolstered in the past 18 months with the recruitment of a further 13 CBMs.

Each team will focus on proactive crime prevention, engagement with communities and partner organisations, and targeting the people and places who are most at risk or who are causing the most harm.

The force says its statistics for December compared to the same month in 2022 show falls in recorded crimes for robbery against the person (-13%); residential burglary (-26.9%); vehicle crime (-13.7%); theft from the person (-14.2%); arson and criminal damage (-9.5%) and public order offences (-14.9%). Shoplifting showed a rise of 24.3% - from 358 offences to 445 offences – which shows that there remains work to do, but the force’s focus will be to police in the most effective way that targets the areas most in need and the crime types which cause the highest levels of harm in communities.

All areas will also be covered by an individual Neighbourhood Plan which includes crime and anti-social behaviour data, in addition to other information, to set Community Priorities.

Ch Supt Kate Anderson said: “This new model is about really focussing on our communities, and providing the best possible service to them within our funding allocation.

“Lincolnshire remains one of the safest places in the county to live, work, and visit, and we are committed to keeping it that way.

“Our neighbourhood teams are a crucial part of Lincolnshire Police and do so much work in the communities we serve. We will focus on keeping people safe, preventing anti-social behaviour, engaging with our hard-to-reach groups and listening to your concerns.

“Those teams also work with our partners to protect adults and young people who are at risk of harm.

“We are committed to using data, including reports through Street Safe, and our Trust and Confidence survey to understand where we need to focus our resources for the best impact.”

The force says PCSOs have been retained in areas based on areas of the greatest vulnerability and need. Chief Constable Chris Haward recently explained that by retaining some of the PCSOs it would more easily enable Lincolnshire Police to build those numbers back up again later if funding levels change. They will continue to focus on targeted engagement, crime prevention and problem-solving, with an aim of reducing crime and anti-social behaviour.

Neighbourhood teams do not work in isolation and are supported by response teams, the dedicated Roads Policing Unit, Rural Crime Action Team and investigation teams.

Inspector Rachel Blackwell leads the Neighbourhood Policing Teams which cover North Kesteven.

In her new community newsletter she said the re-structured teams have settled well into the new Neighbourhood Policing Model, and have worked hard to ensure that residents and businesses could maintain confidence in

the service they receive if they had been affected by any type of crime or anti-social behaviour.

She added: "All of our daily business now has a link into prevention, engagement and targeting. This means we are ensuring that our resources are deployed to the incidents they are most needed, or focus on prevention work. One area we have identified that we will be much tougher on is our response to low-level nuisance or agitation – particularly between neighbours who simply don’t get along – where there isn’t a criminal element which would need a policing resource.

“For our team to become involved, the behaviour should be more than a sequence of low-level acts of menace or irritation. Where both parties are contributing to escalating or sustaining the aggravation when they can choose not to, we won’t direct time at the issue when there are so many other issues facing the area which represent a much graver threat of real harm.”

She described this as an example of how she was asking the community to help the police to help you.

“Myself and my team are here to serve our community, and we will continue to do all we can to keep you safe,” she said.

The priorities for North Kesteven from January to March will see a focus on anti -social behaviour in Greylees, near Sleaford – this follows a surge in calls from residents.

Meanwhile in the rural areas scams that relate to romance fraud or sextortion will receive attention after a notable number of calls about relationship-based frauds or blackmail.

In North Hykeham they would be tackling prolific individuals disrupting the community and affect quality of life, while in the rural areas around North Hykeham they will be raising awareness about doorstep crimes and rogue traders, keeping community informed of issues, increasing a visible policing presence, and encouraging reporting.

Insp Blackwell said: “Our priorities have been set based on feedback from our communities, as well as our own understanding of the issues affecting local neighbourhoods. You might not have personally seen an issue with some of the areas we're tackling, and may wonder why we've put our focus there, and it's a good question to ask. It's because we know there are issues or areas that need our attention, either due to the number of offences,

emerging trends, or other intelligence.”