Cllr Sue Fennimore (front left) and Cllr Stephen Cowan (front right) with local Met Police officers
A new independent, resident-led policing and crime commission will review how the council and police can better work with residents to tackle crime and anti-social behaviour in all neighbourhoods across the borough. The commission will consider how to build better community resilience and how more people can have their voices heard and their concerns properly responded to.
The council is also set to allocate budgets and devolve some neighbourhood decision-making to each of the borough’s 16 wards to allow for quicker, better, and more coordinated actions on a variety of matters. Tackling crime and anti-social behaviour tops residents’ concerns so the commission will review how members of ward police panels can be part of a better process that initiates a quicker, more coordinated and effective series of anti-crime actions.
Hammersmith & Fulham’s deputy leader, Cllr Sue Fennimore said: “At this time of increased serious crime, an on-going threat of terrorism and government cuts to police numbers we need much greater community resilience.
“I’m glad my colleagues and I have been able to pay for the largest amount of council-funded police in the borough’s history but cutting crime isn’t just about policing. It’s also about other factors such as making our environment safer, CCTV and tackling the causes of crime. We will empower more local people to work with the council and the police to deliver more effective crime reducing measures across our borough.
“Crime is rising, especially violent crime involving young people. These challenges simply mean carrying on with the same community engagement approach cannot be an option. We’re determined that all in our community will feel empowered to have their concerns properly listened to and acted upon.”
The policing and crime commission follows on from a number of similar council initiatives, since 2014, that have sought to better engage residents in the decision-making processes that affect them and rejuvenate civic life. Those have included nine other independent resident-led commissions, public policy hearings, hackathons, public workshops and other measures.
The council is piloting these new improved accountability structures following discussions with the police and MOPAC.
The council gained the money for extra policing having taken a tough approach with property developers – negotiating record amounts of new funds. It proposes to work with residents to deliver more and better anti-crime measures in all the neighbourhoods across our borough.
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