To approve as correct the minutes of the meetings held on 18 July 2018 and authorise the Chairman to sign them.

The minutes of the meeting of the Sub-Committee held on the 18 July 2018 were agreed as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

The Sub-Committee received information on performance against indicators previously requested by the Crime and Disorder Overview and Scrutiny Committee during Quarter 1 (April – June 2018).

It was explained that information on shifts where minimum staffing strength was met was unavailable in an accessible format on the Metropolitan internal ‘dashboard’. Due to information not being easily sourced at borough level, the Sub-Committee agreed that the performance indicator be removed.

The Sub-Committee received, and noted, the number of working days lost to aid abstractions from ring fenced roles and data on neighbourhood officers abstracted by rank and officers abstracted for aid court and training, as detailed in the report. It was highlighted that January to March had seen the lowest levels of abstractions in the year. There had been a significant amount of postings in June, due to a significant sporting event placing demand on police resources. There were currently two teams policing Romford Town Centre, consisting of one Sargent and five constables per team.

As of the 20 August 2018, Havering’s performance for all ‘I’ graded calls was at 84.6% and 91.8% for Domestic Abuse ‘I’ calls; S graded calls was at 80.8%. In Quarter 1 of 2018/19, there were 29 calls to police regarding incursions by travellers at thirteen separate locations, leading to a number of repeat calls for the same sites.  Although there had been an increase in traveller incursions compared to the previous year, less antisocial calls had been generated.  The Sub-Committee requested that a report on Policing Traveller Incursions be presented to the next meeting.

RESOLVED:

That the contents of the report, be noted.

The night time economy problem profile sets out the London Borough of Havering profile on non-domestic abuse violence with injury crimes, using data from a number of different partners, including the Metropolitan Police and London Ambulance.  Following the annual strategic assessment in January 2018, further analysis was conducted to review crime in relation to the night time economy, especially within Romford town centre, to inform the work programme of the Havering Community Safety Partnership. 

Kind findings of the problem profile were highlighted as:

·      Romford Town had the highest rate of Violence with Injury and the 8^th highest volume in all London wards in 2017.

·      The analysis of partnership data found that British Transport Police, Transport for London and London Ambulance alcohol callouts during night time hours all saw an increase in number of incidents.

·      44% of victims of violence with injury during night time hours in Romford Town Centre were aged 18-14 and that 62% of incidents were male vs. male. Concern was expressed that nearly 20% of victims recorded by police were aged between 11-17, particularly around the Gooshay’s area.

·      69% of drugs were initially found by police, 20% by door staff and 10% by CCTV.

There were a number of key projects/programmes running in Romford Town Centre to tackle violence and crime in the night time economy, which included Safe and Sound, Banned from one banned from all, street pastors, Eds Place/Eds Out, a marshalled taxi rank, street triage, Town Link Radio, ScanNet, Task and Targeting Group, Public Space Protection Order and drugs dog operations.

Members briefly discussed the link between organised crime and street beggers, during which it was reiterated that the Police had a zero tolerance to begging.  The Sub-Committee requested that a report be presented on Modern Day Slavery. Members noted a reduction in the number of homelessness in Romford Town Centre due to many being found homes by the Local Authority.

RESOLVED:

That the contents of the report, be noted.

Deputy Borough Commander John Ross presented a report on policing the borough’s night time economy.

From the 23 June 2018 – 11 August 2018, there had been 182 hours of overtime which had been used to increase the numbers in the town.

There had been numerous nights of action throughout the year, including joint nights of action that involved London Borough of Havering, Detection Dogs Team, British Transport Police, Safer Transport Team and the Romford Town Centre Team. 

Members received an update on the Havering Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) Strategy 2018 – 2021, which took into account the Mayor of London’s recently released VAWG Strategy in March 2018 so as to align local priorities with those set by the Mayor’s office for policing and crime (MOPAC).

The Sub-Committee considered the draft VAWG strategy, which focused on preventing violence against women and girls; tackling perpetrators and protecting and supporting victims of VAWG.

The Council were proactive and worked closely as a partnership with agencies in the borough, including Ashiana in respect of forced marriages and Solace Woman’s Aid, and used external funding to finance domestic violence projects; and the Police had a dedicated domestic abuse team, with responsibility for safeguarding and support victims.

The level of arrests and detentions in Havering compared to the tri-borough rate was lower at 42%, however each case would be dealt with on an individual basis, irrespective of the geography. The detection rate for domestic abuse was 23.3% over the current rolling 12 month period, compared with 30% previously.

Violence (injury) rate of domestic violence had reduced to 3.6% over the current rolling 12 months with a 32.5% detection rate.  However, domestic abuse data across London was not comparable as there was no common understanding of the definition.

Members suggested that future consideration be given to the establishment of a topic group to consider domestic abuse in the borough.

RESOLVED:

That the draft VAWG strategy be considered and appropriate recommendations made.

The Sub-Committee received, and noted, a report on Knife Crime.  The Sub-Committee had recently agreed to establish a topic group to gain an understanding of the issue of knife crime and extent of gangs in Havering.  Members agreed that the report on the agenda would be discussed at the initial meeting of the topic group.

Committee Members are invited to indicate to the Chairman, items within this

Committee's terms of reference they would like to see discussed at a future meeting.

The Sub-Committee reviewed the work programme for 2018-19 and agreed that the following items be considered at the next meeting:

·         Quarter 2 performance

·         Policing of traveller incursions

·         Hate crime in Havering

·         Update on the traveller injunction

·         Sub-Committee work programme