DRUG dealing, cannabis farms and off road bikes are just some of the problems, which Cleveland’s hotspot patrols have helped tackle in their first full year.
Uniformed Antisocial Behaviour (ASB) Patrols delivered by local authority community wardens have clocked up a total of 7,685 hours pounding the streets of Stockton-on-Tees, Hartlepool, Middlesbrough and Redcar and Cleveland.
Range of problems
In the year to September 2024, patrols have tackled a wide range of problems. They’ve also supported a number of activities aimed at making Cleveland a safer – and better – place to live, work and visit. Work has included:
- Providing police with intelligence on two premises believed to be used for drug dealing
- Identifying a house, which, on further investigation, turned out to be a cannabis farm
- Supplying numerous intelligence reports about off road bike use – and potential locations for bikes to be stored
- Helping to obtain a temporary Closure Order on a suspected Middlesbrough drug den. The premises had long plagued the surrounding community with antisocial and criminal behaviour
- Providing evidence of numerous breaches of a nuisance beggar’s Community Behaviour Order. This landed him in court and led to a lengthy sentence
ASB down
Between September 2023 and August 2024, police reported incidents of ASB were down 21% in hotspot areas.
Nine of the 19 locations initially selected for patrols have now been removed, as they are no longer considered to be among the worst areas in Cleveland for ASB. Those locations have been replaced with other areas, which have shown increased volumes of ASB.
ASB patrols are part of £988,500 invested this year as part of the Government’s Hotspot Response Patrols to tackle ASB.
Enforcement and intelligence
Community Wardens employed by each borough council run Cleveland’s ASB patrols. In their first year, they carried out the following activities:
- Made 109 intelligence reports to the police of suspected illegal activity
- Were involved in tackling more than 957 incidents of antisocial behaviour
- Took part in 532 enforcement actions including issuing warning notices, telling community members to behave – or face the consequences
Partnership working
Cleveland PCC Matt Storey said: “Partnership working needs to be at the heart of how we tackle crime and make people feel safer – and these patrols demonstrate how this works in practice.
“This investment brings together local authorities, Cleveland Police and other organisations to provide wider coverage for proactive activity and enforcement.
“Not only will this help gather more community intelligence, but additional patrols act as a visible deterrent for those considering causing their community harm.”
Top priority
Councillor Brenda Harrison, Leader of Hartlepool Borough Council, said: “Tackling antisocial behaviour is a top priority for the council. If left unchecked, it can have a seriously detrimental and corrosive effect on the lives of law-abiding residents.
“People who take part in antisocial and criminal behaviour should be in no doubt that we are not prepared to tolerate their activities.
“The hotspot patrols in the Headland and Harbour and Foggy Furze wards are a key part of our response.
“We are pleased to be involved in this initiative alongside the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner for Cleveland.”
Councillor Norma Stephenson, Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council’s Cabinet Member for Access, Communities and Community Safety, said: “While Stockton-on-Tees continues to have the lowest recorded crime and anti-social behaviour rate in the Cleveland Police area, the protection of our residents, businesses and visitors is of absolute importance.
“We take antisocial behaviour seriously as we know it can have a profound negative impact on our residents, who have every right to feel safe in their communities.
“The Council’s Civic Enforcement Service, which operates from 7am until midnight every day of the year, carries out regular antisocial behaviour (ASB) patrols to tackle this problem head on, working closely with Cleveland Police.
“We also encourage residents to report antisocial behaviour by contacting our Civic Enforcement service on 01642 607943 or emailing [email protected].”
Matt will host an ASB summit for partners this week to discuss how agencies can work together more effectively to combat ASB. The summit will look at ASB’s impact on victims and how organisations taking part can help solve the problem together.