Street Smart, Street Safe

Crime is a problem no matter where you are, but in the last couple of years the general feeling about the challenging areas of our peninsula has been rather negative. Birkenhead in particular has its reputation of hooded hoodlums and bizarre events that its residents can only attribute to the area. That being said, in recent years local organisations and government have been trying to change that. Not only are we making way with plans to rejuvenate Birkenhead as a shopping district, but there has also been intiatives to tackle crime across the Wirral.

Lockdown saw a decrease in reported crime on the Wirral as expected but all those months cooped up inside our own houses has led to an increase in aggressive behaviour. Last June there were reported assaults along the New Brighton leading to 48-hour Section 34 Dispersal Zone in response to the anti-social behaviour exhibited in one evening. There was also a national rise in concern for domestic crimes such as domestic or child abuse due to the forced isolation of lockdown.

National Crime Statistics

The National Crime Statistics show that reductions were seen across many types of police recorded crime. In particular, theft offences and robbery fell in April to June 2020 by 43% and 47% respectively, compared with April to June 2019, reflecting the increase in time people spent at home during the lockdown period, a reduction in opportunities for theft in public spaces and the closure of the night-time economy.

Forces with the highest volumes of knife-enabled crime were prioritised for the roll-out, 12 forces have now switched to the NDQIS data collection methodology, including Merseyside. In the year ending March 2020 these forces accounted for 64% of the offences recorded by the police across England and Wales that involved a knife or a sharp instrument.

One exception was trends in drug offences, where levels rose by 30% in April to June 2020 compared with April to June 2019; this reflected increased police activity in pursuing these crimes.

There has been great strides in improving our beloved peninsula both aesthetically and to crack down on crime. Perhaps you have noticed local officers from Bebington station in parks and open spaces as part of Operation Parksafe. This operation will ensure that local officers continue to do this to make them safer places for everyone to use during the easing of the lockdown and beyond.

Safer Streets Crime Reduction Programme

This programme ended in March 2021, but in the six months it ran for we in our local community have seen results of its labour.

The project was led by Wirral Council, in partnership with Merseyside Police, the Police and Crime Commissioner and North Birkenhead Development Trust.

Funding of £550,000 from the Home Office, £150,000 from Wirral Council, and £22,000 from Magenta Living funded programmes working with local people to help decide how and where crime reduction projects should best be placed.

The Safer Streets Project has delivered:

• 40 new alley gates
• 8 new and 8 upgraded CCTV cameras
• a new CCTV control room
• 150 upgraded streetlights
• 300 home security packs for residents

Mark Camborne, the Assistant Director for Neighbourhoods, Safety & Transport at the Council and the project’s sponsor said:

The long-term aim of this programme is to develop long-lasting and sustainable improvements to one of the most deprived areas in the Country. To deliver a long-term increase in quality of life for residents, reductions in crime and ASB, promoting a healthier community and real benefits in terms of life prospects for adults and young people.

This sort of programme is devised through the Safer Wirral Service,  a multi-agency service which delivers an effective, joined up community safety service for the people of Wirral.

There has also been a recent operation between local police forces which was behind the recent closure of the Mersey Tunnel. This operation resulted in crack cocaine and cannabis being seized alongside £4,00 in cash as well as weapons.

Inspector Chris Lucan-Pratt said on the operation:

I want criminals to realise that Birkenhead is not a safe place to carry out your illegal activity – we will continue to carry out warrants, roadside checks, stop searches and more and sooner or later, you will face justice for your crimes.

This operation is one of several being enacted to make our area safer. Whilst the police are always the lead on handling crime, there are also a number of crime prevention programmes running on the Wirral doing their part.

Crime Prevention Programmes

• The Hive Against Knives – part of the #BladeFree campaign and have launched  a programme of targeted Youth Work to tackle knife crime and promote positive outcomes for young people.
• Youth Fed – Youth Fed celebrated the delivery of their Trade the Blade programme for a second time earlier this year, this time teaming up with public health agency Healthy Stadia and Activity for All, a sports club in Bootle, to introduce a sport element into the programme.
• Wirral Youth Offending Service –  provides a service for young people aged 10 to 17 who have been involved in offending behaviour. It is a multi-agency service, made up of social workers, youth justice workers and staff from education, police, probation and health.
• MALS Merseyside – work in the crime prevention and personal development field, helping people by utilising their acronym to the full; to Mentor, Achieve, Learn and Support. They deliver various crime prevention programmes in subjects such as gang culture, gun crime, knife crime, bullying, and many more, ending with a life skills session. We also offer a range of services including group sessions and one to one mentoring.
• Special Constables Programme – Special Officers are volunteer police officers, who come from all walks of life. They work both independently and alongside regular officers in Local Policing, Response, Roads Policing and other specialist departments within the Police, helping to keep communities safe

The safety of our local area is a priority to these organisations, as well as to us at Community Action Wirral.

Warren Ward, Executive Director at Community Action Wirral & Wirral Chamber of Commerce said:

Tackling crime in Wirral is a major priority. We believe passionately that we can only reduce crime by working collectively, as a partnership alongside authorities such as Merseyside Police, Wirral Borough Council and our wider community. Putting in place initiatives that not only focus on enforcement but that focus on reducing the causes of crime.

We, at Community Action Wirral hope that as we grow and develop Wirral, our community will grow with us to improve our home.