1. Executive summary
The purpose of this report is to provide Members with the opportunity to scrutinise the work of the South Devon and Dartmoor Community Safety Partnership (CSP).
2. Background
The CSP operates across Teignbridge, South Hams and West Devon and is a statutory partnership.
The CSP works collaboratively across Devon and the Peninsula to tackle issues such as child sexual exploitation, modern slavery, drug misuse, prejudice related crime, preventing violent extremism and domestic violence and abuse.
The CSP delivers activity against a wide range of statutory legislation which continues to expand with the introduction of the Serious Violence Duty. The Home Office are currently undertaking a review of Community Safety Partnerships.
3. Outcomes/outputs
The CSP sets its priorities each March, with all partners using information from the Devon Strategic Assessment and also the Police and Crime Plan. The CSP also responds to emerging risks. CSP Staff attend fortnightly tactical meetings with Police.
The focus of the CSP is addressing areas where risk of harm is the most significant for our communities. A significant priority for the CSP has been violence prevention and tackling violence against women and girls.
The outcomes of the CSP are monitored at each CSP meeting through the Local Delivery Plan (LDP).
In 2022/23 the CSP received a £12,000 grant of violence reduction funding from the OPCC. This funding plan is developed alongside the Local Delivery Plan.
The CSP has also been successful in obtaining £900,000 over four years for delivery of the Turning Corners Programme.
KEY ACHIEVEMENTS
3.1 Achievements across the whole of South Devon and Dartmoor area
|
Priority |
Activity |
|
Sexual Violence, Domestic Violence and Abuse (SVDVA) |
· Established a Violence Prevention and Violence Against Women and Girls sub group. · Quarterly SVDVA forums are convened with a range of partners and are well attended by all. Presentations have been given including a presentation about Stalking, · Engagement in Domestic Homicide Reviews, no Domestic Homicide reviews have been undertaken in South Hams during the reporting period. · Regular engagement with South Devon MARAC (Multi Agency Risk Abuse Conference) to create safety planning for those experiencing domestic abuse in South Devon. · CSP staff are part of the Devon Domestic Abuse Partnership. · Supporting delivery of a pilot project to provide support to couples experiencing violence within their relationships. · 9 performances of the “Unacceptable” production were delivered to approximately 1600 young people to address misogyny. |
|
Exploitation |
· Attendance at the Devon Anti-Slavery Partnership. · Attendance at the Devon and Torbay Prevent Partnership. · Continuing to promote the Exploitation Prevention Toolkit. · Promotion of the Partnership Information Sharing Form. · Engagement with the Adolescent Safety Framework to safeguard individuals and communities from risk of exploitation and harm. · Supporting case management through Channel for individuals who are vulnerable to radicalisation. · Attendance at the Devon children and families partnership exploitation sub group. · Dangerous drugs and county lines awareness session was offered to schools and governors with 30 people attending and very positive feedback. |
|
Drug and Alcohol Misuse |
· Increased awareness of drugs and alcohol issues within a wide range of organisations through county lines awareness raising. · Engagement with Devon strategic group to develop response from governments from Harm to Hope strategy. · Developed protocol for licensed premises to safely dispose of any drugs found. |
|
Changes in Youth Culture / Youth Gang Activity |
· Following conversations with schools concerns were raised about vaping, information was gathered by the CSP from schools across the area and was presented to public health and wider partners resulting in national media attention and a change in commissioning of services. · Engagement with the Adolescent Safety Framework which reviews contextual safeguarding risks in the individual, peer and school context. · Members of Devon Youth Crime Prevention Partnership. · Key partner in the Turning Corners project (South Hams and Teignbridge). · Let’s Talk Program (more details below). · Regular meetings with safeguarding leads at secondary schools to discuss community safety issues. · Regular care homes with staff from children’s care homes. · Continue to lobby around resources needed to address childrens poor mental health. |
|
ASB |
· Produced multi agency response to addressing neighbour disputes to manage demand and public expectations. · In partnership with Dartmoor National Park and the police we developed a working protocol for addressing ASB and the ability to issue community protection warning notices if education fails. · Reviewed recommendations from the Office of the Police Crime Commissioner in relation to community trigger review which now involve the complainant more actively. |
|
Overarching work |
· Training was delivered on 24th January by probation on opportunities to engage with the community payback scheme. · On Wednesday 23rd March 2022 the annual CSP Forum took place via Teams and was attended by 90 people representing 30 different organisations. · Engaged with the development of the Community Mental Health Framework. · Active members of the Safe Devon Partnership. |
3.2 Let’s Talk
· Developed the Let’s Talk project which aims to provide awareness, tips and techniques for parents and carers of children cover a range of community safety issues.
· Developed a toolkit for parents which we delivered through three, hour long sessions over Teams.
· This project has so far been a resounding success with 2497 engagements to date and 99% of attendees saying they would recommend this course to others.
· For the first time the CSP has used paid advertising to promote the sessions and as can be seen from the maps below this project has seen significant interest from across the world.
· 86% of attendees felt better able to support their young people, with a further 12% they maybe.
· We have been overwhelmed by the feedback from parents and carers attending the training.
“The work you are doing is VITALLY important. I have been feeling so alone and isolated as a single parent. This has made me feel supported in just an hr and a half. ”
“The session was amazing. It's been so hard throughout the pandemic to support my three teenagers as there's been so much uncertainty for them. There's so little for parents and the world our teenagers are growing up in now is very different to the world that we did. These sessions are so needed to help us as parents, so thank you.”
“This has been the best online service I have ever been on...thank
you. worth every minute of our time and yours.”
“Thank you for organising these insightful events. I thought I was already quite informed due to my job role, however, I learnt a lot from this event.”
· The latest series of events have been funded jointly by all CSPs in Devon whilst being run by our CSP. Plymouth and Cornwall CSPs are delivering sessions through our CSP in February and March.
· Due to the success of the project we will be bringing partners together in March to see how we can further develop the initiative.
3.3 Additional achievements specific to South Hams
· The CSP has been engaged in Channel Panel multi-agency meetings around individuals where there is concern that they may be vulnerable to radicalisation.
· Claire and Becca have attended a number of meetings including Peer Group Conferences, Mapping Meetings and Neighbourhood conferences regarding the concerns around a group of young people and substance misuse and the risk of exploitation. The Neighbourhood meetings have proved to be successful in determining where the young people of concern are, and Space Youth Services have successfully engaged with a number of the individuals concerned and continue to do so on a weekly basis.
· Presentation given to parents at Ivybridge Community College on exploitation prevention.
3.4 Turning Corners Programme
Turning Corners is an Office of the Police Crime Commissioner funded project for 4 years from January 2021 to December 2024 and is delivered across South Hams and Teignbridge. The partnership involves the CSP, police, Devon County Council and Space youth services.
The programme is fully operational. Claire is now the project lead along with a full time Impact research Analyst and wider project delivery teams. There is also a Turning Corners Board that is chaired by Becca Hewitt. The programme consists of three projects
3.4.1 Outreach
Space youth service are delivering sessions at two locations weekly and have included both Kingsbridge and Dartmouth, engagement from these groups have been good and engagement at Dartmouth is coming to an end. Ivybridge has been identified as a future location for outreach delivery.
Across the project there have been 182 sessions delivered with 1045 contact with young people.
3.4.2 Moving up together
Supports targeted young people and their families from primary school to transition to secondary school. There are 25 feeder primary schools and three secondary schools that are engaged, the secondary schools are Kingsbridge, Coombeshead and Newton Abbot College in Newton Abbot. In phase one we received 32 referrals and in phase two we have received 71 received and are working with 64 young people.
3.4.3 Parent Support groups
Parent support groups have been established with parents identified by partner agencies or by parent self-referral. There have been 92 sessions delivered with attendance from 47 parents from across the area.
3.4.4 Evaluation
A Theory of Change, which clarifies the outcomes for the project has been developed to ensure all partners are clear on the outcomes hoped for by the project.
South West Academic Health Science Network are working as the evaluation partner to the project. The first annual review has been completed and an action plan has been created from the recommendations. There will be external evaluations at the end of each year with the full evaluation at the end of the 4 year programme.
3.5 Achievements in Anti-Social Behaviour – South Hams
This report covers the period 1st October 2021 to 30th September 2022
John Ward, the ASB Officer continues to chair a monthly ASB meeting, which is regularly attended by Police, Registered Social Landlords, South Hams District Council and Community Mental Health Team. At this meeting individuals causing anti-social behaviour are discussed, together with vulnerable adults. As a snap shot, the meeting in October 2021 discussed eight vulnerable adults and one individual causing ASB. In September 2022, six vulnerable adults were discussed and six individuals causing ASB. The purpose of discussing vulnerable adults is to ensure that the adult is accessing all available services and support. The reason for discussing the adults causing the ASB is to jointly develop interventions to address the behaviour.
Over the year period of this report 26 individuals were referred into the ASB escalation process. This is a 23% increase compared to the same period the previous year. Of these referrals 28 came from the Police, across the whole area. Three individuals made personal referrals, three came from partner agencies and two from within the Council. These referrals resulted in 13 ASB first stage letters being sent to adults. Two second stage youth ASB letters were sent concerning youth behaviour in Ivybridge. Two second stage ASB letters were sent. One of which concerned a young person who was also referred to the Youth Justice Service. Five Community Protection Warning letters were issued. Of the five Community Protection Warning letters sent, only one was escalated to a full Community Protection Notice (CPN). This concerned a male living in a caravan, further to the service of the CPN, together with joint working with Devon County Council the male moved away from the area. He had been offered help and support from drug and alcohol services, together with support from the Councils homeless workers. All help was refused. His details have now been passed onto Torbay Council whose area he has moved into.
There have been three Community Trigger activations. Two activations came from residents in Kingsbridge and revolved around neighbourhood issues. Both involved the Police and LiveWest Housing Association, both resulted in Community Trigger Review Meetings. Further recommendations were made and have been completed. The third Community Trigger activation involves a LiveWest tenant in Totnes and we worked with LiveWest, Police and SHDC. As result the review meeting was chaired by the ASB Officer from Torbay Council, both SHDC and Police are exploring possible legal action.
Two Anti-Social Behaviour Injunctions were obtained by LiveWest, both involved joint working with SHDC and the Police. The two injunctions relate to tenants in Totnes and Dartmouth, both revolved around neighbourhood issues.
The Neighbourhood Policing Team in Ivybridge are in the process of seeking a Criminal Behaviour Order (CBO) for a male who has been charged with public order offences. The CBO conditions cover the males behaviour towards local business’s, use of the 999 system. At present the application is with the Crown Prosecution System. This follows joint working with SHDC.
4. Options available and consideration of risk
The CSP continues to be intelligence led and directed by the findings of the Devon Strategic Assessment. This document guides the CSP to understand the threat, risk and harm that our communities face. From a day-to-day basis engagement with partner agencies ensures that risk is dynamically managed.
5. Proposed Way Forward
Members consider the report and any issues be taken to the next CSP meeting which will be taking place on Wednesday 25th January 2023.
6. Implications
|
Implications |
Relevant |
Details and proposed measures to address |
|
Legal/Governance |
|
The Council is required by section 19 of the Police and Justice Act 2006 to have a committee with power to review or scrutinise decisions made, or other action taken, in connection with the discharge by those authorities responsible for crime and disorder strategies of their crime and disorder functions. The Committee undertakes that role.
|
|
Financial |
|
2022/23 income to the CSP included a £12,000 grant of violence reduction funding from the Police Crime Commissioner.
The staff costs of South Hams District Council contribution to Community Safety Partnership and Anti-Social Behaviour in 2022/23 was £25,011.
|
|
Risk |
|
Members consider the report and any risks be taken to the next CSP meeting. |
|
Supporting Corporate Strategy |
|
Communities, Wellbeing and Homes |
|
Climate Change – Carbon / Biodiversity Impact |
|
No direct carbon/biodiversity impact arising from the recommendations |
|
Comprehensive Impact Assessment Implications |
||
|
Equality and Diversity |
|
The CSP addresses issues including hate crime and specific crimes relating to vulnerable members of the community such as exploitation. |
|
Safeguarding |
|
CSP staff engage in a number of safeguarding forums and promote effective safeguarding practice in their work. This links to internal Council safeguarding. The Community Safety Specialist also has a Safeguarding role at SHDC. |
|
Community Safety, Crime and Disorder |
|
The report details the many implications on Community Safety of South Hams District Council’s engagement in the CSP. |
|
Health, Safety and Wellbeing |
|
The CSP works closely with public health and other partners on health and wellbeing issues including alcohol, licensing and mental health. |
|
Other implications |
|
|