[To recommend to Full Council that it approves the Safer Wolverhampton Partnership refreshed Community Safety and Harm Reduction Strategy for 2020-2023]

That subject to amendments to emphasise the links between the strategy and Anti-Social Behaviour Teams, and to bolster the equalities implications section, Full Council be recommended to endorse the Safer Wolverhampton Partnership Community Safety and Harm Reduction Strategy 2020-2023.

Councillor Jasbir Jaspal presented the draft Safer Wolverhampton Partnership – Community Safety and Harm Reduction Strategy 2020-2023. She asked Cabinet to endorse the strategy for recommendation to Full Council, subject to amendments to emphasise a greater link between the strategy and anti-social behaviour teams and an additional comment to bolster the equalities implications section.   In presenting the report she highlighted some of the successes and challenges from the previous strategy that would be built into the refreshed strategy going forward.  She also referred to the priorities that had been included in the new document and the place based approach to deliver the strategy.

Resolved:

That subject to amendments to emphasise the links between the strategy and Anti-Social Behaviour Teams, and to bolster the equalities implications section, Full Council be recommended to endorse the Safer Wolverhampton Partnership Community Safety and Harm Reduction Strategy 2020-2023.

[Lynsey Kelly, Head of Community Safety and Hannah Pawley, Community Safety Manager to present report]

Lynsey Kelly, Head of Community Safety, introduced Hannah Pawley, Community Safety Manager, and Superintendent Simon Inglis to the panel.  The Head of Community Safety presented the report and commented on specific aspects of the strategy document. The Community Safety Manager outlined the process used to agree the overarching priorities to help reduce crime and disorder. The priorities were selected to allow sufficient flexibility to respond to emerging crime trends and performance framework would be monitored by Safer Wolverhampton Partnership Board. The Community Safety Manager outlined the aims of draft Community Safety and Harm Reduction Strategy.

The Head of Community Safety explained that a place-based approach to reducing crime and disorder has been adopted, with a focus on empowering and supporting local community to get involved. The draft is currently being out for public consultation which ends shortly. The panel were encouraged to take part in the consultation. The draft has been shared with Wolverhampton Youth Council and the issue of hidden crimes was identified as a priority.

The panel were invited to comment on the draft strategy. The panel queried the resource implications of the strategy and if there were any concerns. Superintendent Simon Inglis, West Midlands Police, advised the panel that WMP has also adopted a place-based approach to tackling the priorities detailed in the strategy, with a focus on reducing reoffending rates as one of the key priorities. Superintendent Inglis advised that an extra 600 police officers will be recruited across the West Midlands as a result of increased Government funding. The Director of Public Health commented on the importance of partnership working across the different agencies and the added value of engaging members of the local community in helping to deliver the strategy. The panel queried the lack of detail in the strategy about how the concerns about LGBT+ community will be addressed, and work being done to engage them in its development. The panel suggested more work needed to include data about the needs of this group in the report. The Head of Community Safety responded the concerns of the LGBT+ community were included in previous strategy documents drafts. However, it was estimated that represent about 2% of the population and was decided not to include it in the current strategy.  The Director of Public Health agreed to bring a further report on the work done engage with the LGBT+ to a future meeting of the panel.

The panel welcomed the report.

Resolved:

1.    Lynsey Kelly, Head of Community Safety, to be consider panel comments on the draft Safer Wolverhampton Strategy and make changes as necessary.

2.    The panel support the overarching priorities for the draft Community Safety Strategy 2020-2023 agreed at the consultation event held in June 2019.

3.    John Denley, Director of Public Health, to present a report to a future meeting of the panel on work being done to engage with the LGBT+ community and also to address the specific concerns of the panel about the collection of data to inform the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 9