Four youth clubs in London – in Haringey and Westminster boroughs, and two in Lambeth – have had extra physical security installed to combat violence.
The installs include heavy duty doors, that allow staff to remotely lock and unlock to prevent passers-by entering the venue freely. An air lock lobby enables staff to monitor who is coming in and out. Besides, ten youth clubs will receive defibrillators along with the training to use them. London Fire Brigade carried out inspections of the premises to identify and mitigate any fire hazards and provide advice around fire evacuation plans. The Met Police’s Cyber Protect Team offered the youth clubs cyber protection advice to raise awareness of and help the organisations protect themselves from cyber crime.
The initiative, badged the Youth and Community Centre Security Scheme, is part of Metropolitan Police work with the police scheme Secured by Design (SBD), London Fire Brigade and London Ambulance Service (LAS). Further funding has been secured indefinitely to ensure more youth clubs and community centres across London can also benefit from security overhauls.
The scheme was officially launched on Wednesday, June 23, at Alford House Youth Club in Kennington, Lambeth, south London; pictured. Secured by Design CEO, Guy Ferguson, thanked the London-based gate and door installer Premier Security & Fire, and manufacturer Warrior Doors for the work at the venues.
Tim Saunders, the Youth Club Manager at Alford House, said: “Any youth worker will tell you that they strive to carry out activity in a safe environment, both physical and emotional. Anything that improves safety must be welcomed. The new design actually makes the entrance to the club much more welcoming than before, while improving our ability to see exactly who is coming in and out.
“It’s terrific that these features lead to greater security for all who use the club, and this investment in youth clubs is most welcome. The parents of younger members are pleased and the older members have commented on what a good idea it is. This process was not without its teething problems but everything was surmountable and we even had some laughs along the way. I am so pleased we have benefited from this and I am delighted the scheme will be continued into the future.”
And Met Assistant Commissioner Helen Ball said: “During lockdown we have been working behind the scenes to improve the practical security of these youth clubs so that young people and the local employees have safe spaces to return to now lockdown restrictions are lifting.
“My thanks go out to the assistance of our partners in making these improvements to create safer environments for young people to come together to enjoy themselves, which we hope will reduce the risk of violence around these areas.
“Targeting violent crime remains the Met’s number one priority and requires a collective effort, as seen here in the success of this scheme, to prevent acts of violence from occurring in the first place. This initiative forms part of the wider work officers from across the Met have been doing to ensure we are prepared and ready to tackle any violence through the summer months.”
Background
Met Police Commissioner Cressida Dick has consistently said that violent crime in the city is her number one priority. Violence is also politically an important issue. The London Assembly recently for instance called on the Mayor of London to undertake a review on the murder rate among the black community. Sophie Linden as Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime recently to the Assembly’s police and crime committee stressed work by the Mayor’s office against knife crime, saying that ‘some of the key indicators of violent crimes are down, including knife crimes with injury against under-25s, moped enabled crime and gun crime’.
