Changes to local Policing

No doubt you will have all heard about the funding cuts imposed by the Mayor of London on the Metropolitan Police. In total the Met. have been asked to achieve savings of £500M and this has required a detailed review of operational practice. Through our Safer Neighbourhood Panel (SNP) we have been aware of the tremendous amount of work this has entailed for policing in Bromley leading up to the introduction of the new organisation from mid-September. We thought this would be a good opportunity to explain how these changes affect our local Safer Neighbourhood Team (SNT) and to provide reassurance for our members..

The Safer Neighbourhood Teams (SNT) are still in existence, just run in a different format. The Borough has been divided into four Neighbourhoods, each with a dedicated Safer Neighbourhood Policing Team. Our Ward, Plaistow & Sundridge, is part of the North East Neighbourhood with resources shared with our neighbouring wards of Bickley, Bromley Town, Chislehurst, and Mottingham & Chislehurst North.

Inspector Darren Murphy is responsible for the operation of the NE Neighbourhood Team and can allocate resources according to need. This means a greater focus on crime, and solving it. If there were, for example, lots of burglaries on our Ward, police would be sent over here to patrol, gather intelligence, conduct reassurance visits, give security advice and solve crime.

Our local SNT manpower remains unchanged under the supervision of A/Sgt Wayne Page. Sgt Dave Morbin retired at the end of November. To provide continuity within this more flexible working arrangement there will be a dedicated Police Constable, PC Mark Russell, and dedicated PCSO, PSCO Mara Sow who will maintain detailed local knowledge and information flows. The  local Police shop is no longer fully operational and the members of the SNT are required to parade at Bromley Police Station and then be transported to their respective focus of operations.

Our Ward, as part of the Neighbourhood, will be policed for longer hours: On Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays shifts will run until 2 am. This of course should be very beneficial for us all. Patrolling by the SNT will continue to be done on foot and on bikes, the latter meaning that they can get round the Ward, or deal with a situation, more quickly

Currently crime and anti social behaviour on our Ward is very low – largely because our SNT have done a superb job to get it that way – and there is no reason to suppose that will change.

Street Briefings, and local surgeries, will continue to run in the same way so if you are particularly worried about something then either speak to our SNT or Street Representative who will put you in touch with someone who can help. 

You can contact the police in the following ways: 

• If a crime is taking place and you are in immediate danger, always dial 999 
• If you wish to contact the police and it is not an emergency, call 101. Also using this number you can request a visit from a local police officer within 48 hours.
  
• Our local SNT can be contacted by dialling 020 8721 2613.  Although this looks like a landline number you will be transferred to the mobile normally carried by the Dedicated Ward Officer.  However, this mobile will operate only when the team is on duty.
  
• For non-emergency situations you can also visit the Front Counter at Bromley Police Station (next to Bromley South railway station).  It is open 24hrs a day. 

Peter Skipp

Chairman, representing LERA on the Plaistow & Sundridge Safer Neighbourhood Panel.

This article was first printed in the Christmas edition of the LERA Newsletter which you should have already received.