SURREY’S Police and Crime Commissioner Lisa Townsend has unveiled a new blueprint for policing in the county over the next three years.
The Commissioner’s Police and Crime Plan sets out the priorities she wants Surrey Police to concentrate on during the rest of her current term of office, which ends in 2028.
The Plan features a focus on ‘back to basics’ policing, preventing violence against women and girls, protecting Surrey’s most vulnerable residents, and ensuring the accountability, integrity and wellbeing of the Force’s officers and staff.
It was created following an extensive consultation period where nearly 3,000 residents gave their views, together with community groups, businesses, partners and victims’ services.
Police and Crime Commissioners are required to produce a Police and Crime Plan every four years and it will form the basis upon which Lisa holds the Chief Constable to account for the policing service Surrey Police provide.
Surrey Police is one of the fastest-improving forces in the country having more than doubled its charge rate in the past 12 months, with an additional 3,500 offences prosecuted.
Charges for burglary, assault, retail crime, rape and child abuse have significantly increased, and an additional 2,500 arrests have been made across all crime types.
But the Commissioner said there are challenges ahead. The Force has to find around £18million in savings over the next four years, while criminal justice delays are putting additional pressure on victims’ services.
The Force is also facing increasing demand on ‘hidden’ crime, such as domestic abuse, fraud, and the online exploitation of children, which target some of the most vulnerable people in Surrey.
Force among fastest-improving
Lisa said: “My mission as your Police and Crime Commissioner is clear.
“I want Surrey Police to focus on tackling those crimes that blight our local communities, while also taking persistent offenders off our streets.
“I promised that we would return to a ‘back to basics’ approach to policing, and this pledge forms the cornerstone of my Police and Crime Plan.
“Fighting crime, getting tough on offenders, and protecting Surrey’s most vulnerable residents must be at the heart of the Force’s priorities in the coming years.
“We carried out extensive consultation with residents, community groups, business leaders and victims’ services, as well as hosting 12 in-person and online Policing Your Community events over the autumn and winter.
‘Back to basics’
“I have heard loud and clear what those who live and work in Surrey want to see their policing teams do in our communities and they are making great progress.
“Surrey Police is one of the fastest-improving forces in the country, with 3,500 additional charges across all crime types in 12 months, as well as 2,500 more arrests.
“Charges for some of the crime types that are particularly important to residents, such as child abuse, burglary and retail crime, have dramatically improved.
“It is crucial that this fantastic progress is sustained so we can continue taking the fight to criminals who seek to gain a foothold in our communities.
“Surrey remains a wonderful place in which to live and work, and I am committed to working with the Chief Constable to deliver on the priorities outlined in my Plan.”