Agenda item
COMMUNITY SAFETY PLAN 2012-13
To adopt the Council’s Community Safety Plan 2012-13 as recommended by the Executive at the Cabinet Meeting on 4th April 2012.
The report of the Mayor in Cabinet, plus appendices including the proposed Community Safety Plan document are attached.
Consideration of this matter was deferred at the Council meeting on 16th May 2012.
Decision:
Councillor Abdal Ullah moved, and Councillor Judith Gardiner seconded, an amendment attached as Appendix 1 to this Decision Sheet. The amendment, and then the substantive motion as amended, were put to the vote in turn and were agreed.
DECISION
That the draft Community Safety Plan 2012-13 be referred back to the Executive for further consideration in the light of the amendment agreed by the Council in accordance with the provisions of the Budget and Policy Framework Procedure Rules.
(Action by: Stephen Halsey, Corporate Director, Communities, Localities and Culture;
Emily Fieran-Reed, Head of Community Safety Partnership;
John S. Williams, Service Head, Democratic Services)
Minutes:
The Council considered the report of the Cabinet meeting of 4th April 2012, incorporating the report of the Corporate Director, Communities, Localities and Culture, proposing the adoption of a Borough-wide Community Safety Plan for 2012-13. The Community Safety Plan was one of the plans and strategies that make up the Council’s Policy Framework and was therefore required to be adopted by the full Council.
Councillor Abdal Ullah moved, and Councillor Judith Gardiner seconded, a tabled amendment as follows:-
“This Council notes:
- There continues to be serious public concern about the levels of crime in Tower Hamlets.
- Incidents of serious violent crime and serious acquisitive crime have increased over the past year.
- The proposed Community Safety Plan contains very few targets or measurable criteria for success, therefore allowing little oversight.
- The proposed Community Safety Plan does not clearly focus on the issues of most importance to local residents, those of serious violent crime and serious acquisitive crime.
This Council believes:
- Every step should be taken to combat criminality in Tower Hamlets.
- Priorities for community safety in Tower Hamlets should be clear and measurable in order to maintain public support and oversight.
- It is the role of every elected representative to work towards a safer community.
This Council therefore resolves to amend the report as follows:
- Delete the second bullet point on page 31, (“Exploit the Mayor’s role as a unifying figure via the Citizen Engagement Strategy”).
- Delete “through scrutiny and its role in the budget process” from the third bullet point on page 31.
- To add a new page after page 3, in the same font, size and layout as page 3, stating:
Note from Tower Hamlets Councillors
Tower Hamlets councillors represent residents living in all corners of our borough and so every day we hear about the crime and anti-social behaviour experienced by local people.
We know that for too many of our residents, Tower Hamlets doesn’t feel safe enough, and that too many people are still the victims of crime and anti-social behaviour.
That’s why we were concerned that this Community Safety Plan did not seem to recognise this reality. Undoubtedly a lot of good work has been done by the Council, the police, housing providers and others in tackling crime and ASB, and every year there are lots of successes.
But despite that good work, some types of crime are rising. In the last year, both serious violent crime and serious acquisitive crime have gone up. At the same time, residents’ concern about drug-use and dealing, drunk or rowdy behaviour, and vandalism, graffiti and criminal damage has also risen.
In a year when visitors from all over the world are coming to East London to enjoy the Olympics, the Community Safety Partnership needs to be better than ever at identifying the risks and causes of crime and ASB, and putting in place challenging targets and strategies for reducing them. Whilst there is clearly good work being done by the partnership, Tower Hamlets councillors were disappointed that this Community Safety Plan contained few targets, had very little in the way of concrete plans and didn’t reflect the concerns that residents raise with us. It also is of great concern that the Plan does not set out a clearer strategy for halting the rise in serious violent and acquisitive crime and reducing the fear of crime in our borough.
As councillors we have opposed police counter closures planned for the borough, called for action to tackle drink-related ASB around Brick Lane and united against the threat to order in our borough posed by extremists – yet none of this is reflected in the plan.
We hope that, despite this, the Community Safety Partnership will work effectively this year to address the concerns of our community. We also hope that the Partnership will make more of an effort to use the expertise and knowledge we have, as representatives of our whole borough, in doing so.
Tower Hamlets councillors”
Following debate, the amendment moved by Councillor Abdal Ullah was put to the vote and was agreed. The substantive motion as amended was then put to the vote and was agreed. Accordingly, it was:-
RESOLVED
That the draft Community Safety Plan 2012-13 be referred back to the Executive for further consideration in the light of the amendment agreed by the Council in accordance with the provisions of the Budget and Policy Framework Procedure Rules.
Supporting documents:
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item 4 - Community Safety Plan report from Cabinet, item 4.
PDF 59 KB
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item 4 - Community Safety Plan report to Cabinet, item 4.
PDF 96 KB
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item 4 - Community Safety Plan appendices, item 4.
PDF 390 KB