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Safer Streets Fund

by Mark Rowe

A £25m scheme to tackle burglary and theft in crime hotspots was launched by the Policing Minister. The Safer Streets Fund opened to bids from police and crime commissioners (PCCs) across England and Wales to fund initiatives aimed at stopping these offences happening. The fund is designed for areas that need to tackle theft, robbery and burglary – known as acquisitive crimes.

Launching the fund, Policing Minister Kit Malthouse said: “We are determined to cut crime and make our streets safer. That’s why we are backing the police with more resources and recruiting 20,000 new officers. This fund will help prevent people falling victim to crimes which can have a real impact on a community, like burglaries or theft”.

Association of Police and Crime Commissioners (APCC) lead for prevention, Roger Hurst welcomed the launch, and the investing in a more preventative approach. He said: “Preventing crime in the first place is better for the public and reduces demand on policing. We want to ensure that this funding is used to drive down crime in the most effective way, including through targeting key local hotspots.”

PCCs, in formulating bids, will work with local partners to identify those measures that are most likely to make places safer. PCCs will be expected to make use of local police force data and to use toolkits provided by the College of Policing, in partnership with other experts, to understand where the funding can have the biggest impact and what interventions will work best in a local area. Police Crime Prevention Initiatives are supporting delivery of the fund, with Secured by Design (SbD) trained DOCOs (Designing Out Crime Officers) assisting in developing bids for the fund.

Jon Cole, Chief Operating Officer at Police Crime Prevention Initiatives, the police umbrella body for SbD and other related initiatives, said: “I am delighted that we will be assisting delivery of this fund to prevent burglary and other crimes in disproportionately affected areas in England and Wales. Secured by Design developments deliver significant reductions in crime and anti-social behaviour and as such, can and should, be an important constituent element in providing a prosperous and vibrant community for generations to come.”

PCCs can use the fund to improve neighbourhoods by, for example, increasing street lighting, installing better locks and gating alleyways. They can also use the money on other types of crime prevention, such as training community wardens, and delivering local crime prevention advice to residents or Neighbourhood Watch schemes. Successful areas will receive grants of up to £550,000.

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