Stevenage Council and local police have showcased to the Police and Crime Commissioner some of their crime reduction projects that have seen success in the town.
 
Councillor Richard Henry, the borough council’s Executive Member for Safer and Stronger Communities, hosted Commissioner David Lloyd’s visit in which he met the council’s
Anti-Social Behaviour Team, Safer Neighbourhood Team officers and specialists in dealing with domestic abuse as well as Council Leader, Cllr Sharon Taylor.
 
Commissioner Lloyd went to The Hyde, where the council and the police have successfully worked with the community to improve the local environment. He also visited Marymead, where a new initiative aimed at curbing youth-related anti-social behaviour is currently being trialled 
 
He said: “I have been very impressed with the work of the local teams here in Stevenage to tackling criminal and anti-social behaviour and make a real impact on improving the quality of people’s daily lives.
 
“I must have a hands-on understanding of the real issues at the heart of communities and recognise how resources are being used now so that I can make informed decisions about where and how my future community safety budget, and current budgets, should be allocated to best effect.”
 
He added: “My Police and Crime Plan, which is due to be published in full later this week, talks about the importance of agencies working together and sharing resources, cutting through waste and focussing effort on keeping communities safe.  Policing really is everybody’s business and working together to deal with anti-social behaviour and domestic abuse before they escalate can really make a difference to people’s lives.”