Agenda item

7.1

Maxine Stavrianakos, Head of Neighbourhood Intervention and Tenancy Support, gave a presentation which updated the Committee on community safety issues.  This included information on the Safer and Sustainable Communities Partnership, the Police and Crime Commissioner, Police and Crime Panels, the Joint Strategic Intelligence Assessment (JSIA), Partnership Plan Priorities 2014/15, performance, achievements, challenges, the budget, and the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Police Act 2014.  In addition, the Committee received a report of the Interim Director of Council Housing, which provided a progress report on the Partner Resource Allocation Meeting (PRAM). 

7.2

Members made various comments and asked a number of questions, to which responses were provided as follows:-

·                There were links between the community remedy process and restorative justice, but there had only been one case in Sheffield regarding community remedy and this had not gone through the process yet.  As such, it was difficult to comment on the effectiveness of the process.

·                There had been some training of staff in relation to Community Protection Notices and there was a growing awareness of their use. 

·                Consideration was being given to the setting up of a combined Anti-Social Behaviour and Community Safety Unit, which would have a multi-tenure approach and would look at how people were supported through diversionary activities.  There were, however, resource issues.

·                It was hoped to balance the support given to individuals, in relation to anti-social behaviour issues, who were in Council housing with that given to those in private accommodation.  The Housing Revenue Account funded tenant support, whilst general funding financed support in the private sector.  It was always possible to take actions against Council tenants as against the private sector, but this needed to be equalised. 

·                The proposed combined Anti-Social Behaviour and Community Safety Unit would include two Police Officers.

·                All information on the use of drugs would be fed into the appropriate unit, so that the causes of such use could be analysed. 

·                Funding had been made available for the Dark Nights operation in Darnall and there had also been previous prevention work.

·                Procedures in relation to the Community Trigger process were now in place.

·                Maxine Stavrianakos would check on the scope of the Community Protection Notice and Civil Injunction procedures and report back.

7.3

RESOLVED: That the Committee:-

(a)       thanks Maxine Stavrianakos for her contribution to the meeting;

(b)       notes the contents of the presentation and the report on the Partner Resource Allocation Meeting and the responses to questions; and

(c)        requests that:-

(i)        consideration be given to the holding of a training session for Councillors on community safety, which could take the form of a surgery approach;

(ii)      the presentation be reproduced in the form of a briefing paper to be circulated to all Councillors and included in the New Councillors’ Induction Pack; and

(iii)     the updates on progress on the Partner Resource Allocation Meeting be continued to run alongside the annual presentation to the Committee.