Stewarding of traffic diversions and vehicle queues at four Household Waste Recycling Centres in Merseyside – reopened following UK Government easing of coronavirus restrictions – has been by a Liverpool-based company.
A total of 11 staff from Paramount Stewarding and Security have been deployed at two of the Household Waste Recycling Centres – Old Swan and Otterspool in Liverpool, and at the centres in Bootle and Southport in Sefton council area. They checks that locals use only designated, coned lanes to the Centres rather than usual access points, and send non-site traffic on through routes. As well as providing guidance at the start of the queue, their remit includes keeping open access to businesses near the queue lanes, besides monitoring driver behaviour and responding to any issues.
Under the Community Safety Accreditation Scheme (CSAS) the staff have been accredited with some police powers by Merseyside’s Chief Constable. Paramount’s CSAS staff have been deployed with 21 traffic stewards who are briefed daily about safety. All the uniformed staff have been provided with face masks, personal hand sanitiser and training on social distancing.
Merseyside Recycling & Waste Authority, with its contractor Veolia, operates all 14 Centres across Merseyside most of which re-opened for cars only (no vans or commercial vehicles) on Monday, May 4 after agreeing with local councils and police on traffic management for queuing and diversions, plus coronavirus restrictions.
Paramount director, Christine Fletcher, said: “In times of uncertainty and worry, the public seek out reassurance and guidance from those in the frontline. Our staff have found that a friendly face, providing strong, clear instructions has been welcomed by the public. Where they have been confused by any ambiguity and mixed messages around the easing of restrictions, we have been able to guide people in the right way, with the right amount of support.
“The public have reached out to us on many occasions in recent weeks to offer thanks to our CSAS teams. Some have been glad of someone to point them in the right direction, some have been glad that we managed the traffic well and defused situations that could have deteriorated, and some have been so nervous about leaving their house, that they were just relieved to see a friendly face.”
Guy Ferguson, Chief Executive Officer, PCPI, said: “This is an excellent example of where properly trained and accredited staff can help their communities. The CSAS initiative is an excellent route to swiftly provide staff to assist in policing duties, which enables warranted police officers to be utilised elsewhere.”
PCPI Compliance Manager, Ken Meanwell, who leads on CSAS, said: “CSAS accredited officers are now accepted as part of the extended policing family. Traffic management plays a vital role in controlling access to recycling centres, giving clear guidance to motorists allowing business to be resumed whilst ensuring the safety of visitors and staff according to government guidelines.”
Merseyside Police Chief Constable, Andy Cooke QPM, said: “The CSAS scheme is an excellent example of how we can work in partnership and capitalise on the knowledge and experience of trained staff. Since lockdown restrictions were lifted and recycling sites re-opened, we have seen an increase in the volume of traffic using roads to access the sites on Merseyside.
“By giving accreditation to a company whose staff are already experienced in maintaining community safety, it means that we can utilise their skills to deal with traffic management and community engagement while also saving valuable police time.”
And Merseyside Recycling & Waste Authority’s Chief Executive, Carl Beer, said: “We’re pleased that we’ve got the majority of our Centres reopen, and would like to pass on our thanks to our District partners and Merseyside Police who have facilitated the traffic management plans and the assistance on queuing at sites. It’s very reassuring that Paramount Stewarding and Security employees are CSAS accredited, and they have provided excellent support at our Centres in Liverpool and Sefton.”
About Paramount Stewarding and Security Ltd
Launched in 2002 by the chief stewards at Everton and Liverpool Football Clubs, Paramount Stewarding offers security, stewarding, crowd and road management for sports, cultural and festival events around its home town of Liverpool and the UK. Visit https://paramountstewardingandsecurity.co.uk/.
CSAS background
Assessing private sector companies seeking approval to run a CSAS scheme is done for the National Police Chiefs’ Council by Police Crime Prevention Initiatives (PCPI), a police-owned company. PCPI checks that companies are ‘fit and proper’ to exercise CSAS powers and then makes recommendations to Chief Constables in England and Wales. They decide whether to accredit people and to give limited but targeted powers. PCPI has assessed more than 120 private sector companies seeking to run a CSAS.
