Innovative crime fighting projects short-listed for 2007 Problem Solving Award

01/07
10 January 2007

Projects to promote community safety across London are to compete for London’s second annual Problem Solving Award this February.

Showcased by the Metropolitan Police Service, Metropolitan Police Authority and the Safer London Foundation, eight projects will vie for the prestigious award, which celebrates innovation and recognises good problem solving to make London’s neighbourhoods safer.

Among the short-listed entries are projects that improve community safety, divert young people away from involvement in criminal activity, reduce robberies from school children and make travelling on London buses safer.

The Problem Solving Award celebrates initiatives that develop problem oriented policing techniques – in essence projects that are responsive to local needs, are people focused and address the causes of crime, not just the consequences. The projects are conceived and put into practice in partnership between local police and communities.

Inaugurated in January 2006, the award recognises the achievements of partnership projects between the police and local communities to reduce crime and disorder. It is a collaboration between the Metropolitan Police Authority, the Metropolitan Police Service and the Safer London Foundation, the independent charity that aims to reduce crime, promote community cohesion and develop safer neighbourhoods through innovative community led crime reduction projects.

Richard Sumray, MPA member leading on problem oriented policing, said:

"The Authority welcomes the high quality of this year’s entries. We expect this annual showcasing of problem oriented policing in London to go from strength to strength, spreading effective ideas across the boroughs and contributing towards making the capital a safer place for all our communities.

“Across London the Met is becoming more accustomed to using a problem solving approach to tackling crime, working in partnership with other agencies to make our communities safer environments to live and work in.

“The whole point of problem oriented policing is that it focuses on addressing the causes of crime rather than just the symptoms, stressing a partnership approach, and the MPA is actively encouraging the MPS to adopt this proactive and innovative approach to tackling criminal behaviour.”

Tony Shepherd, Chief Executive of the Safer London Foundation, said:

”The Safer London Foundation, as the charitable and independent arm of the MPS, fully supports and encourages innovation and creative partnership-based steps to make the capital safer. Our ability to offer funding, volunteers and mentors to those facilitating community projects makes us a unique crime-reducing charity that is proud to be involved in the annual Problem Solving Award.”

Tim Godwin, Assistant Commissioner Territorial Policing, said:

"The Met has now completed its roll-out of 630 neighbourhood policing teams dedicated to local problem solving in partnership with local people and other agencies. This is a massive commitment to the concept of partnership and problem-solving. This year’s entries showcase some of the excellent work that is taking place across London, and the award highlights their importance in making London safer.”

Notes to editors

1. The short-listed projects are:

• ‘Operation Bustag’, a tailored CCTV response from the Transport Operational Command Unit to tackle the problem of criminal damage on London’s buses (estimated at £10m annually) and reduce the fear of crime for the travelling public;
• ‘CoP (Community or Police) Cards’ youth engagement project in Kingston upon Thames to break the cycle of young people joining gangs and becoming involved in anti-social behaviour at an early age;
• ‘School age robberies’ a Wandsworth project, initiated by the Furzedown Safer Neighbourhoods team to reduce unacceptable levels of robberies in and around a local school;
• ‘COP (Community Orientated Policing) Leadership Course’ on the Holland Estate, Tower Hamlets, to encourage a sense of self-responsibility and self-autonomy for young people at risk of becoming offenders;
• ‘Holland Estate Youth Engagement Project’ in Tower Hamlets, established to reduce anti-social behaviour in and around the estate;
• ‘Safe and Sound – Reducing Crime in the Bromley Night Time Economy’ established as a response to extended drinking hours and the perceived increases in anti-social behaviour and violence;
• ‘Corporation Avenue Alley Reclaim scheme’, Hounslow, to tackle anti-social and criminal behaviour in alleyways in the local neighbourhood; and
• ‘Robbery Reduction in Merton’, to reduce the number of robberies by young people against young people and violence across the whole borough.

2. This will be the second annual Problem Solving Award to be held specifically for London’s police. The inaugural awards were presented on 7 February 2006 at the ‘Safer Neighbourhoods: the future of policing’ conference jointly organised by the MPA and MPS. The 2006 winner was the Camberwell Safer Neighbourhoods team in Southwark for an innovative scheme to tackle street drinking.

The Camberwell team went on to win third prize at the national Tilley Awards organised by the Home Office and were asked to present their project at the Goldstein Award for Excellence in Problem-Oriented Policing in the United States.

3. The awards will be presented as part of a one day MPS ‘Safer London Problem Solving Conference’ on 21 February 2007.

4. The MPA Scrutiny on Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnerships (CDRPs), published in January 2003, included a recommendation to develop the use of problem oriented policing across London (Recommendation 28:The MPA recommends the problem oriented policing model as good practice for boroughs and CDRPs. It recommends that the MPS evaluate how the model works in those boroughs where it has been implemented and considers how it can be developed for use in all London boroughs). The scrutiny report is available at: www.mpa.gov.uk/reports/cdrpscrutiny.htm

5. Formed in 2005, the Safer London Foundation helps to reduce crime in London by supporting and funding innovative community-based crime reduction projects. It works in partnership with the police, government and business to make London's neighbourhoods safer places to live, work and visit. SLF corporate volunteers and mentors work across the capital's diverse communities, providing a unique and valuable link between the people of London and its businesses. More information about the Safer London Foundation is available at: www.saferlondonfoundation.org.uk

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