Anti-social behaviour down 10% across Newark and Sherwood

ASB was down 10% in August and 9% in September, when compared to the same periods last year, including decreases in the Newark town centre wards of Castle, Beacon and Devon, where partners from the Council, Nottinghamshire Police and the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner (OPCC) have been targeting a reduction.

Whilst there have been some recent high-profile incidents of ASB and damage to parks in Newark and Sherwood, which the Council and police have responded to by writing to schools in the vicinity of the areas that have been targeted, the report by Bassetlaw, Newark and Sherwood Community Safety Partnership (BNSCSP), has been positively received.

Councillor Paul Taylor, Portfolio Holder for Public Protection and Community Relations at Newark and Sherwood District Council, said: “While we are very aware that anti-social behaviour continues to affect residents and businesses, this report is really encouraging to show that our work, whether it be through target hardening, prevention, intervention or prosecutions, is helping to reduce this unacceptable activity.

“Anti-social behaviour has a devastating effect on victims and the community, and we will continue to invest into the safety and security of our district so that residents can truly see a real, tangible difference in the place they call home.

“Our message and our goal remains clear, we want to create a Newark and Sherwood where residents, visitors and businesses can feel safe and welcome, and we will not stop working hard against those who threaten that.”

Recently, three teenagers were served with injunctions banning them from Newark Town Centre following numerous incidents of ASB against residents and businesses. Despite many interventions and repeated warnings, their distressing and threatening behaviour failed to stop, and legal action had to be taken. 

Over the summer months the Council and its partners also worked on safety sessions with young people to educate them on the dangers and impact of ASB and unsafe behaviour around water and fire. Similar work also includes safety consultation events with residents, nights of action in hotspot areas, as well as other safety events and school talks to educate young children via early intervention methods.

Partners including the OPCC, Police and the Council have also delivered more than £1 million of interventions such as gating, lighting and CCTV cameras to help deter and capture ASB through the Safer Streets initiatives.

The visibility of Community Protection Officers (CPOs) who patrol the district daily was also strengthened this year, by taking into account locations and times of patrols, and investment in an additional hybrid vehicle and charging point to increase the presence of CPOs across the district by allowing them to work more flexibly and provide an enhanced responsive service.

The second Anti-Social Behaviour Summit will be held in October 2023 and will be attended by Newark and Sherwood District Council, Nottinghamshire Police, the Nottinghamshire Police and Crime Commissioner to build upon the work already being done to create a safer district.

Inspector Charlotte Ellam, District Commander for Newark and Sherwood, said: “Cracking down on reports of anti-social behaviour (ASB) is a longstanding priority for our neighbourhood policing team because we know how much of an impact this offending can have on people’s lives.

“Our officers do so much work each day to target ASB in Newark and Sherwood, with much of this involving us teaming up with our key partners, like Newark and Sherwood District Council.

“As an example, thanks to buy in from the district and town councils, we now have the option of basing our officers at a new location in the market square in Newark town centre, which allows us to provide more of a visible presence in this area to help deter crime.

“This also means we can respond to more incidents in the town centre as they happen, while we also have a dedicated ASB rapid response car – which has been operational for several months now – that allows us to carry out more patrols across a wider area and get to ASB calls quicker than before.

“While we appreciate that more still needs to be done to tackle ASB, it is pleasing to see this ongoing work has resulted in positive strides being taken towards improving this issue.”