Forest North Safer Community Team

100% Pass Rate for Forest Shops Visited in Alcohol Test Purchase Operation

July 27 2010

Police in the Forest ran a test purchase operation last Friday, July 23 and all nine shops visited were successful in not selling to an underage customer.

Shops and off-licences were visited by three 14-year-old girls acting as test purchasers in order to check they are remaining vigilant when serving potentially underage customers who wish to buy alcohol.

Nine businesses including the Spar in Sedbury, Tesco in Lydney, Tuffins in Coleford and the Co-operative in Coleford refused to sell to the girls.

PC Duncan Sleeman, Forest Licensing Officer, said: “Underage drinking is very often a cause of anti-social behaviour so I hope the local community will be pleased we are running these type of operations and will continue to run them throughout the summer holidays.

“The results are excellent as they show that licensed premises in the Forest are being responsible and generally not selling to underage people.

“All the shops tested will receive good feedback from us in due course.

“I would also like to thank officers from the Special Constabulary who assisted. Without their help operations like this would be very difficult to run.”

Newent Police Praise Vigilant Street Warden For Reuniting Victim With Stolen Goods

June 14 2010

Police in Newent are praising a vigilant Street Warden who helped reunite a burglary victim with stolen garden property

At the end of June, a member of the public alerted Forest of Dean District Council Street Warden Rob Carpenter that he had discovered some pine garden furniture hidden amongst trees at Bromsberrow Heath Quarry.

Rob enlisted the foreman of the quarry to store the furniture, which included a pine table and bench seat worth over £100, and the following day police received a report of the theft of the items during a burglary at a house in Batchfields, Dymock. The furniture was then reunited with the owner.

PC Brian Howard, of Forest North Safer Community Team, said: “Rob’s work here was exemplary and helped salvage some good from the terrible experience the victims went through.

“It was also an excellent example of partnership working. Rob regularly checks in with either myself or the PCSOs that work here, and he enjoys regular cooperation with us.”

Council Leisure services for young people

To view the Forest of Dean Council Leisure services for young people, please visit their website here.

Longhope Playgroup Children Meet Forest North SCT

 July 5 2010

Forest North Safer Community Team (SCT) met local kids at Longhope Playgroup at the end of last month.

The children learned what officers do in day-to-day activities and how police can help them. They also had an opportunity to sit in a police car and turn the sirens and lights on. 

Police Community Support Officer James Pearce said: “It was great to engage with tomorrow’s community and I think we now have plenty of future recruits.

“Meeting these kids at a young age is vital to fostering trust and confidence in us.”

Forest North SCT Help School Children Learn Safe Places To Play

July 2 2010

Forest North Safer Community Team (SCT) have been working with a local primary school to teach kids about keeping safe when going out.

All the pupils from Mitcheldean Primary School worked with PCSO James Pearce recently, learning about safe places to play.

Police Community Support Officer Pearce explained: “The children were put into class groups and came up with things that they should tell their parents or guardians before they go out to play. 

“The four main points that they all agreed on were that they needed to ask their parents or carers for permission to go out, and tell them where they are going, who they are with and what time they will be home”

The children also discussed the good and bad points about playing in the street, in woodland, or on building sites and each group shared the results with the rest of the school.

PCSO James Pearce said: “I was very pleased with the imagination of the children from reception to year six and how well they communicated with each other and then had the confidence to stand up and tell the important safety messages to the rest of the school.  Hopefully the messages of where is safe and unsafe will be remembered alongside the fun they had.”

More information on child safety can be found via http://www.gloucestershire.police.uk/kids_aware/1.html

Forest Sees Biggest Drop In Crime In The County

Crime in the Forest of Dean is down by almost a fifth compared to last year, according to the latest annual figures, meaning that the Forest has seen the biggest reduction in crime out of all Inspector Neighbourhood Areas in the county.

For more information, please read the full press release by clicking here.

Policing Priority Leads To New Lease Of Life For Blakeney Youth Shelter

 June 3 2010

Police from the Forest North Safer Community Team (SCT) have helped spruce up Blakeney Youth Shelter to make it more attractive to young people in the area.

The community partnership, headed by local police, provided funding for redecorating to take place while local youths and partner agencies helped do some of the practical work.

Police Community Support Officer for the area Lucy Webb explained: “We joined forces with the Blakeney Baptist Drop-in Club to clean up the area around the shelter and give it a new lick of paint.

“The youths that took part are a credit to the Blakeney community. They have worked extremely hard to clean up the recreation area and other places in the village.

"Youth diversion was named by local people as a policing priority because it helps prevent anti-social behaviour, so I hope this will give people confidence we are acting on the concerns that matter to them.

“We would like to thank all those involved, especially Rose Peatie, whose continued work with youths in the village is invaluable in making Blakeney a better place for everyone. “

More information on the Forest North SCT and the work they do can be found by clicking here.

Picklenash Junior School Crowned Tag Rugby Champions, St Gregory’s Runners-Up, At Countywide Police Event

 Picklenash Junior School won the countywide tag rugby tournament organised by Gloucestershire Constabulary and partners last week.

Over 200 pupils from 18 primary schools across the county competed at the event at Hartpury College on Friday, May 21.

The annual tournament, which has been running since 2008, was organised by police with the UK Child Victims of Crime charity, Rugby Football Union and Hartpury College and is part of a national scheme.

Picklenash will now battle it out for a place at the finals to be held in Twickenham later this year.

Gloucester rugby player Jack Adams was there to give a few pointers and present the children with their awards at the end of the competition.

The Catholic School of St Gregory the Great in Cheltenham were runners-up on the day.

Detective Chief Inspector Simon Atkinson, who coordinated the event, said: “The day was a massive success and everybody who took part was worthy of winning the trophy.

“The children really enjoyed themselves, gave confident performances and really embraced the ethos of the day which was to work as a team, respect each other and enjoy it in a safe environment.

“It’s more important than ever before that we, as a police force, get into schools and forge contacts with these youngsters, and their parents, as early as possible. It breaks down barriers and means they get to know we’re the good guys.

Policing Priority Means New Skate And Bike Park On The Agenda For Cinderford

Forest North are working with the Forest of Dean District Council and Cinderford Town Council to progress work on a new skate and bike park for youths in the area.

The move to provide young people in the area with more things to do follows the setting of a local policing priority targeting anti-social behaviour in the town.

A neighbourhood panel meeting was held with partner organisations and local residents at the end of May and the decision was taken to continue the work to provide youths with new ways to spend their time.

PC Duncan Sleeman said: “Following the meeting we will be speaking to local youths, council, Crime Disorder Reduction Partnership, youth and local leisure services with a view to a long term provision of a state-of-the-art skate and bike park.

“This type of thing is what local people have said they want as a priority as it results in less kids committing anti-social behaviour, and people can be confident we are determined to continue working on it for them.”

Since the priority was set by local people, police and partners worked together to organise the Friday Night Project, which provided youths in the area a chance to take part in a number of sports at local venues. 

Alcohol Consumption In Public Places In Cinderford, Newent, Coleford And Lydney – What The New DPPO means

Following the introduction of a Designated Public Place Order (DPPO) to deal with alcohol consumption in designated public places in Cinderford, Newent and Lydney, (see previous news item) the SCT would like to explain precisely what the order means.

The DPPO applies to designated specific areas (including town centres) in Cinderford, Coleford, Newent and Lydney.  The areas are signposted so people should know if they are in one. Alternatively, you can find more information about the areas effected by clicking here.

What the order means is that in these areas if a police officer or Police Community Support Officer (PCSO) reasonably believes that a person is, or has been, consuming intoxicating liquor or intends to consume intoxicating liquor the police officer or PCSO may require the person concerned:

(a) not to consume in that place anything which is, or which the police officer or PCSO reasonably believes to be, intoxicating liquor;

(b) to surrender anything in his possession which is, or which the police officer or PCSO reasonably believes to be, intoxicating liquor or a container for such liquor

The order will not prohibit people from consuming, buying or possessing alcohol in these areas.  An offence is only committed where a person fails to comply with any of the requirements listed in (a) or (b) above.

Four Charged Following Construction Site Burglary In Cinderford

Police in the Forest North SCT area have arrested and charged four people in connection with a burglary in which appliances were stolen from new build houses on a construction site in Cinderford on April 20. Local people have been thanked for their assistance in the enquiry. For more information, click here to read the press release. 

Police Join Forces with Co-operative in Cinderford to Spread the Crime Prevention Message

  Forest North SCT has joined forces with the Midcounties Co-operative in Cinderford to ensure that local residents and people shopping in the town are getting important crime prevention messages.

From Thursday April 22 the Co-operative in Dockham Road will be displaying messages from the local SCT on flat screen televisions around the store that are usually used to show current offers in the store and other adverts.

County Council funded officer PC Duncan Sleeman said: “The use of these screens will enable us to reach a large number of the community to not only deliver crime prevention messages but also encourage members of the public to familiarise themselves with their local policing team."

For more information, please click here.

DPPO Introduced in Coleford, Newent and Cinderford

The Forest North and Forest South Safer Community Teams are cracking down on alcohol fuelled anti-social behaviour in Coleford, Newent and Cinderford by introducing a Designated Public Place Order (DPPO.)

The DPPO will be in place from Wednesday April 14. It has been introduced as a response to complaints from local residents about anti-social behaviour.

For more information please click here .

Internet awareness and safety

Do you know who your child is speaking to when on the internet?

The internet is used worldwide by persons of every age and walk of life, children are particularly knowledgeable in the use of computers having grown up using them from an early age and having been trained in their use at school. Not forgetting that mobile phone technology is forever improving which is also enabling people to access the internet whenever and wherever they are.

As you would protect your child in everyday life, you would want them to be protected when using the internet to safeguard their happiness and well-being. Knowledge gained through school lessons and common sense can reduce the risk of your child coming to harm through using the internet and in particular certain chat rooms like Bebo and Facebook.

If your child understands the risks and can make sensible and informed choices online, they can get the most from the internet and stay safe whilst doing so. Gloucestershire Constabulary would encourage all parents and carers to take time to educate themselves on internet safety by visiting internet safety advice web-sites.

Community Engagement

Please take the time to send an e-mail using the 'Contact us' section at the top of this page telling us your concerns you have about the area that you live in. Please be as specific as possible regarding locations / activities and times. Remember they do not have to be crime related.

Alternatively, please feel free to stop any of the members of the Safer Community Team for a quick chat to tell them your concerns. All the PCSO's are out and about throughout the INA and will be happy to stop at any time, and will be at the Police Information Points (PIP) posts at specific times and dates. 

Burglary in Highnam

Police are appealing for witnesses following a burglary in Highnam on Wednesday March 10.

For further details please click here .

Gloucestershire County Council Contact – Bethan Mickiewicz

As the area lead officer for community engagement in Newent and Cinderford, I am the main contact for any issues involving the County Council that are agreed as priorities by our communities. This can include issues such as flooding, parking, street lighting, road conditions, footpaths, recycling, schools, Trading Standards, road safety and more. 

It is my job to ensure the right County Council services are engaging with our local communities and working to help meet the priorities agreed by them at the quarterly Neighbourhood Panel Meetings.  

Through working together with the police Safer Community Team and the Forest of Dean District Council and other partners, I hope we can really make a difference to people where they live, making their neighbourhood a safe and pleasant place to be.  

As part of this role I will attend community meetings or identify relevant County Council officers who need to attend to help discuss community concerns.

Bethan can be contacted at Gloucestershire County Council on 01452 426673 or by e-mail at bethan.mickiewicz@gloucestershire.gov.uk

Local Surgeries

Each community has a named officer as you can see by our website. PCSOs are the eyes and ears of our community, as well as providing high-visibility reassurance patrols they are absolutely key in gathering intelligence.
 
Your information matters!!
 
Please talk to your local PCSOs, what you tell them is fed into the police intelligence systems and allows police officers to take pro-active action to combat the problems that you are concerned about. This may lead to the execution of drugs warrants, arrests, stop searches and many other initiatives.

Smartwater

The last area for Smart Water in our region has been successfully canvassed and final orders are awaited. This will complete coverage across all of the Forest of Dean. 

Smart Water can be dabbed onto items or sprayed onto anyone entering a property illegally and can be used in conjunction with an alarm system

Smart water was launched in the area last year, and is also now a feature in all schools in the Forest of Dean. It has been a resounding success in reducing burglaries. The insurance companies state that some £120,000 has already been saved in claims as a result of implementing a Smart Water strategy in Forest schools. All custody suites in Police Stations now have ultra-violet light arches through which suspects walk. These lights highlight the slightest contact they may have had with the product. 

Domestic sized Smart Water kits are still available through the Neighbourhood Watch Office in Cinderford on Tel 01452 335570. For those of you interested in purchasing a home protection pack of Smartwater for £15 please contact either Chris Parkes Neighbourhood Watch on 01452 335569 or PC Bob Lloyd on 01452 335569.