GLA Group Community Safety Policy Statement

Report: 9
Date: 6 September 2007
By: Chief Executive

Summary

This report requests that approval be given to the GLA Group Community Safety Policy Statement (attached) on behalf of the Authority. The Policy Statement has been developed by the GLA Community Safety Plus Steering Group, which has membership from across the GLA Group.

The GLA Group Community Safety Policy Statement is intended to raise the profile of community safety and crime reduction within the GLA Group as a whole, to facilitate closer partnership working and to prepare for crime reduction becoming a statutory duty across the whole GLA Group (it already is for MPA, MPS and LFEPA, but not for other GLA family members).

A. Recommendation

That the Committee approves the GLA Group Community Safety Policy on behalf of the Authority.

B. Supporting information

1. This report requests the committee to approve the GLA Group Community Safety Policy Statement (see Appendix 1) on behalf of the Authority.

2. The Policy Statement has been developed by the GLA Community Safety Plus Steering Group, which has membership from across the GLA Group, and is endorsed by the Greater London Authority Chief Executives.

3. The GLA Group Community Safety Policy Statement is intended to raise the profile of community safety and crime reduction within the GLA Group as a whole, to facilitate closer partnership working and to prepare for crime reduction becoming a statutory duty across the whole GLA Group (it already is for MPA, MPS and LFEPA, but not for other GLA family members). This will happen when the Government applies Section 17 of the Crime and Disorder Act, as amended by the Police and Justice Act 2006, to the GLA, LDA and TfL (it already applies to the MPA MPS and LFEPA). Section 17 requires relevant authorities to do all they reasonably can to prevent crime and disorder in London and to pay due regard to the reduction of crime, disorder, anti-social behaviour and the reduction of substance misuse in all of their work.

4. The development of a GLA Group Community Safety Policy Statement helps ground the Group’s work on mainstreaming crime reduction and community safety.

5. The GLA Group Community Safety Policy Statement:

• Sets out the Mayor’s vision to ensure London is one of the world’s safest cities and the GLA group’s commitment to achieving this vision.
• Recognises that the GLA and its functional bodies can individually and collectively have a major impact on community safety in London by shaping the capital’s economic, social and spatial environment.
• Sets out the common principles that will guide the GLA group’s community safety work and crime reduction work, such as a belief that prevention is better than cure, a commitment to protecting all of London’s diverse communities and a commitment to helping those who break the law to get their lives back on track.

6. The intention is for the Policy Statement to be launched by the Mayor in Autumn 2007 – following sign up from each GLA Group member.

C. Race and equality impact

7. The Policy statement includes a commitment to ensure protection of London’s diverse communities.

D. Financial implications

8. There are no financial implications from endorsing the Group Policy Statement. The MPA and MPS are already subject to the Section 17 duty and already work in partnership with other GLA Group bodies.

E. Background papers

None

F. Contact details

Report author: David Riddle, MPA

For information contact:

MPA general: 020 7202 0202
Media enquiries: 020 7202 0217/18

Appendix 1

Greater London Authority Group Policy Statement on Community Safety and Crime Reduction

The Mayor’s community safety vision

• The Mayor is committed to ensuring London is one of the safest cities in the world. This vision may be an ambitious one, but achieving it is essential not only to the health and wellbeing of all those who live, work, study in or visit London, but also to the continued prosperity and social cohesion and sustainable development of the capital.
• Crime and the fear of crime have a major detrimental impact on people’s lives and it is the vulnerable who are especially likely to be both victims and offenders. Achieving the Mayor’s community safety vision could therefore not be more important to the lives of Londoners or to the capital’s status as a leading world city.

A shared GLA Group approach

• The Mayor believes that the GLA Group can have a major impact on community safety in London. All of the functions of the Mayor and the GLA group are in some way relevant to community safety. The whole GLA Group has therefore now adopted the principles of Section 17 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 as amended by the Police and Justice Act 2006, thus ensuring community safety and crime reduction is at the centre of decision-making within the Group.
• The whole GLA Group has agreed that the promotion of community safety and the reduction of crime and disorder will be a cross-cutting theme supporting their service objectives.
• This means that all major decisions taken by the Greater London Authority (GLA), London Development Agency (LDA), London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority (LFEPA), Metropolitan Police Authority (MPA), Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) and Transport for London (TfL) will in the future include consideration of the implications on community safety, crime, fear of crime and the contribution being made to ensuring safety is at the heart of London’s status as a leading world city.
• Each member of the GLA group has a unique contribution to make in promoting community safety in London.
• All GLA Group members have also committed themselves to mainstreaming community safety and to working together to promote community safety in London.

A principled community safety policy – A 10 point approach

In taking forward work to ensure London is one of the world’s safest cities the Mayor and the GLA Group are committed to adhering to 10 common core values, beliefs and principles, which have been agreed as follows:

• Mainstreaming community safety - Recognition that community safety is essential to London and to the capital’s economic, social and sustainable development and that it must therefore be a key and cross-cutting priority
• Working together - Acknowledgement that all of the GLA Group’s functions, from planning to transport to economic development to housing to skills and employment, are in some way relevant to community safety and that working together is the best way to make London safer
• Focus on prevention - A belief that preventative work, especially with young people, must be prioritised by the GLA Group, and that a focus on promoting community safety and tackling the causes of crime and risk factors behind offending is the most effective and sustainable long-term approach to preventing the next victim
• Public realm - A commitment to ensuring that the public realm promotes community safety and the reduction of crime and disorder, for example through designing out crime, regeneration, housing policy, transport safety, fire safety, tackling anti-social behaviour and by instilling civic pride in Londoners
• Diversity - A commitment to protecting all of London’s diverse communities, challenging discrimination, and to ensuring men, women and children of all ages who live, work or study in or visit the capital can safely make the most of London life
• Support for victims and witnesses – Championing comprehensive support and services for all victims and witnesses of crime so that they feel able to report offences
• Promoting justice - Protecting communities by support for London’s criminal justice agencies in their work to bring offenders to justice and increase confidence in the justice system
• Resettlement of offenders - A commitment to helping offenders to get their lives back on track by identifying, providing and supporting opportunities, for example related to skills, employment, healthcare and housing, that will help them stay away from crime and make a positive contribution to society
• Community engagement – A commitment to putting communities at the heart of community safety policy and to involving communities in all aspects of making London safer, including shaping local and regional priorities
• Evidence based practice – Being proactive in adopting good practice from elsewhere and showcasing to others the things that London is doing well, as well as demonstrating a commitment to innovation and to evidence-based community

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