On Tuesday 17 January, my office organised a public meeting for the residents of Leicester East.
And so I made my way to Wesley Hall, just off Spinney Hill Park in East Leicester. When I arrived, two of my staff members were busily setting out the chairs and tables and putting up signs to welcome everyone. It was not long before members of the public started to arrive. By the start time of 6:30 we had about 20 people present, but as we got underway that quickly doubled.
After the opening presentations by myself and Deputy Chief Constable David Sandall, it was over to questions from the floor. And a very lively set of questions they were too. The first was about crime levels in the area. David was able to reassure people that crime in East Leicester was down on last year – though as ever there were a few blips going in the opposite direction.
The Evington area was the main place where street crime had risen slightly. This then led into quite a discussion with the audience, but it soon became clear that a confusion had arisen between the Evington area and the Evington Road. Mr Sandall was able to clarify. There were a few particular issues on the Evington Road, which the local beat team were on top of and dealing with by tightly focussed and pro-active policing. The Evington area had a more diffuse set of issues, which had just been highlighted by statistical analysis. Again the police were taking steps to deal with them, but they were distinct from the Evington Road. With that sorted out, we moved on to a discussion about the different routes to get in touch with the police. To give non-urgent information the best is to report via the website [www.leics.police.uk] or to dial 101 if you are not on-line.
In answer to a query about how long it takes the police to answer the phone, David said that 94% of 999 calls are now answered within 10 seconds.
Discussion then moved on to Spinney Hill Park and some anti-social behaviour. Several members of the public emphasised that these problems happen in the summer when the weather is warm and the evenings are light. “Who wants to cause trouble when its this cold?” one man said while pointing out the window to the frosty street outside. Much of the trouble seemed to centre around people drinking alcohol. As Mr Sandall pointed out, drinking in the park is not illegal so the police can’t really take action. It was if the drinking led to offences being committed that the police would get involved. Otherwise it was a matter for the park wardens.
After a few other issues were aired – and answered either by David or by the local beat officer – the meeting was drawing to a close. It was my duty to close the meeting down, thanking my staff who had organised it all. As the people were leaving, one gentleman made a point of thanking me for having held the meeting so that local people could air their views. Another complimented me on Mr Sandall’s informative responses.
And then it was out into the frosty night air to find my car and drive home for supper. Thank goodness for my efficient car heater.
