Agenda item

Members received a presentation by Police Sergeant David Kuttner of the Thames Valley Police Aylesbury Vale Rural Neighbourhood team, outlining the work of Thames Valley Police in the local area. Sergeant Kuttner informed Members that the Winslow and Villages team consisted of 1 PC and 1 PCSO based out of the Winslow Police Base working in a shift pattern, in addition to Response Officers in Buckingham and Aylesbury who are available 24/7 for emergencies across the Vale. Another PCSO would be joining the team in November.

The presentation outlined the challenges faced by Thames Valley Police during the COVID-19 pandemic, which had impacted services such as Community Speedwatch, which had to be suspended indefinitely owing to safety concerns. Parishes were still able to request a 7 day Speed Survey by contacting Transport for Bucks, to gather evidence for future action to take place where speeding was an issue. Adstock Parish Council also made an offer to share a movable VAS with other interested Parish Councils.

Sergeant Kuttner gave Members an overview of the impactive crime rates in the local area, including burglaries, anti-social behaviour, fraud and drugs. Police were also responding to reported breaches of COVID-19 social distancing rules. Members were informed that since the end of lockdown, the overall number of reported breaches had decreased, however as the rules continued to change, this was an area of future concern. Members of the public were encouraged to adhere to the rule of 6 and follow the latest Government advice.

Thames valley Police would look to prioritise reduction of impactive crime in the local area, though Members and attendees were encouraged to give their feedback to help shape Policing priorities in the local area moving forward.

Members sought further information and were informed that the most common examples of fraud that occur in the Winslow and Villages area are spam emails and text messages attempting to extort money from recipients, or exploit vulnerable people for fiscal gain. Sergeant Kuttner also informed the board that most anti-social behaviour and drug offences were committed by residents of the Winslow and Villages area, and not by individuals coming from outside.

It was explained to Members that whilst the exact figures were not able to be determined at this stage, Thames Valley Police had noticed a significant drop in the number of burglaries over the last few months, but that reports of domestic incidents and Catalytic Converter thefts had increased.

Finally, Sergeant Kuttner expressed his intention to consult with his Inspector internally to increase Police presence in Winslow itself as a deterrent to crime, and had been encouraging more PCSOs to work from the Winslow Police Base as a means to this end. Members’ attention was drawn to the addition of a new PCSO to the team in November as a further step to increasing the interchange of Officers in the area.

Members thanked Sergeant Kuttner for his presentation and the hard work of his team. It was hoped that a fruitful partnership could be developed with Thames Valley Police in the future.