Agenda item

To receive a report providing an update on Community Safety, and a presentation from the Willow team relating to the strategic priority of serious and organised crime and child exploitation and the County-wide collaborative arrangements responding to this priority risk.

Councillor Jan Warwick had been invited to attend the Select Committee for this item, to provide an update on the work of the Hampshire Police and Crime Panel. The Police and Crime Panel (PCP) scrutinise the Police and Crime Commissioner, and Cllr Warwick was the Hampshire Member appointed to this panel. Cllr Warwick gave an overview of the remit and workings of the PCP, and highlighted that the PCP undertake ‘pro active scrutiny’ of particular topics in further detail. In 2017 the Panel considered rural crime and traffic crime, in 2018 operational policing, and in 2019 was looking at festival security.

The Select Committee then received a report on behalf of the Director of Adults’ Health and Care providing an overall update on community safety issues, focusing on the remit of this Select Committee to scrutinise partnership working in relation to crime and disorder. It was reported that work had been undertaken over the past year to strengthen the overarching governance around community safety. The County Strategy Group had identified strategic priority areas, one of which was organised crime and child exploitation. It was noted that Councillor Joy was the Executive Member for community safety. Some Members commented that there could be improved member oversight of this area of work. The Chairman suggested a further update on the work of the County Strategy Group come to this committee sooner than the next annual update.

The Select Committee then received a presentation from the Willow Team in Children’s Services and a representative from the Police Missing Exploited and Trafficked (MET) team, regarding child exploitation. Members heard about the complex issues involved in child exploitation, and the ‘county lines’ model used by organised criminal gangs, which included using children to carry and sell drugs. Often the arrangements cross local authority boundaries, and Hampshire children could be drawn in by gangs based in London. Joint working between the County Council and the Police identified at risk children, and categorised their level of risk as red amber or green. A number of joint operations had taken place, identifying individuals involved in particular operations and then finding ways to disrupt their activities and reduce the level of risk to the children involved.

The Police representative indicated that not all drug networks involved children, and it was mainly cocaine and heroin they deal in as those drugs were the most lucrative. It was noted that recent legislation regarding modern slavery provided another way to target those involved in this type of criminal activity, as it provided a better threat than a drug related conviction. Members asked questions to clarify points and debate what they had heard. The Chairman thanked the presenters for their time.   

RESOLVED:

That the Select Committee:

1.    Note the establishment of the Hampshire County Strategy Group for Community Safety.

2.    Note the current work programme of the County Strategy Group for Community Safety.

3.    Note the work undertaken to develop the Strategic Assessment of Community Safety and the establishment of strategic priorities for partnership working.

4.    Request a further update on the work of the County Strategy Group earlier than the next annual update.