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Home > Council & democracy > Council meetings > ePetition - Drug dealing, drug abuse and antisocial behaviour in and around Cambridge Heath station

Petition details

Drug dealing, drug abuse and antisocial behaviour in and around Cambridge Heath station

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We the undersigned petition the council to Move the rough sleepers hostel adjacent to Metropolis night club to a less residential area in the borough or alternatively significantly increase policing in the area early morning and evenings and review terms and conditions of offending rough sleepers to access the hostel's services

We are petitioning to complain about the increasing drug dealing, drug abuse and antisocial behaviour in and around Cambridge Heath Station.
For years now many of the under signed have raised to the police and other local services the difficulty of raising families in an environment that is dangerous and aggressive and poses a threat to local residents.
Drug dealing in plain day light and during school hours has become rampant.
The area has two primary Schools (Bonner and St Elizabeth) whose families and children are continuously exposed to undesirable role modelling and aggressive behaviour.
Further more the high concentration day and night of rough sleepers that can not secure a space in the Hostel means that they tag tail residents into their buildings making them dirty and hugely insecure with many of them using our houses as toilets and engaging in theft (as you maybe able to confirm with the many complaints raised with the local police, local authority and housing association Peabody).
In the hours of darkness the area is incredibly unsafe with groups of drug abusers and drug dealers parked or stationed outside the station and the Co op supermarket and adjacent streets making it really challenging for all to walk around alone.
In one isolated incident a bunch of 14 year old kids from the neighbourhood were chased by drug dealers and they had to seek shelter at the Metropolis night club, evidence of this was raised to the police.

This Petition ran from 05/09/2022 to 04/11/2022 and has now finished.

64 people signed this Petition.

Council response


Thank you for attending Full Council on Wednesday 5 October 2022 to present your petition. I am very sorry to hear that your quality of life is being impacted by the anti-social behaviour and drug dealing in your neighbourhood. I am providing a written response as requested by Council. I have also brought your petition to the attention of the Borough Commander as it also requires a policing response.

Edward Gibbons House is a commissioned service by the London Borough of Tower Hamlets for people who are homeless and have a substance and/or alcohol dependency. The service provides accommodation and support to 35 residents and provides a safe home, employment, training, healthcare and social care support as well as access to treatment services. The service is registered with the Care Quality Commission and was rated as Outstanding when it was last inspected on the 13 January 2021.

However, whilst the people are receiving treatment for addiction, there are times of relapse which can attract drug dealers and other problematic users to the area. We have developed a multi-agency action plan for the area, including increasing both Council and Police uniformed presence in the area. Officers have advised that whilst some of the people being stopped are from the Hostel, others are from elsewhere. Enforcement action is being taken against certain individuals who are also encouraged to take up treatment.

Included within the action plan is working with the hostel to address the behaviour of some of their residents. Hostel staff are patrolling and challenging unacceptable behaviour when conducting their own patrols. Where hostel residents are identified as being a problem, and where warnings are not adhered to, action has been taken by the hostel within the framework of their tenancy. In recent weeks, a resident known for causing issues in the area, has been evicted and another is facing court for eviction proceedings. The hostel has been able to use photographs and information received by neighbours in proceedings and to challenge residents.

The Action Plan has also included Council and Police Officers being tasked to the areas around the hostel and Cambridge Heath Station and working with British Transport Police to try and prevent people using the train to visit the area for the purpose of crime i.e. drug dealing and using.
The patrols have included the area around the two local schools, which I agree is particularly concerning. We have visited both Bonner and St. Elizabeth schools that you refer to and another junior school in the area. Further enhanced patrols are being conducted throughout the day and evenings to deter crime and anti-social behaviour and bring reassurance to the community.

I have asked Council Officers to update local residents with a letter explaining what actions have been completed and how residents can report issues to the authorities and directly to the Edward Gibbons House management.

I hope this clarifies the action the Council has taken at this point in response to the anti-social behaviour and drug dealing in your area. You have my assurance that the area will remain a focus for our continued multi-agency work for the immediate future. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you need any further clarification

Yours sincerely

Denise Radley
Corporate Director of Health, Adults and Community & Deputy Chief Executive

Disclaimer

Tower Hamlets Council accepts no liability for the petitions on these web pages. The views expressed in the petitions do not necessarily reflect those of the Council. If you have any queries about petitions or any comments or suggestions, please email Committee Services at committee.services@towerhamlets.gov.uk or call 020 7364 4878.

 

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