Police get closer to public in shake-up

From the Telegraph & Argus, first published Tuesday 7th Sep 2004.

A new scheme to bring the public into closer contact with the police has been launched.

The new initiative is aiming to improve the way officers deal with anti-social behaviour in Bingley, Shipley, Keighley and Ilkley areas.

There will be regular meetings between police, councillors, neighbourhood watch members, youth councils, business people and other community representatives.

These 13 Tasking groups, based on electoral wards in the Keighley police division will come into operation over the next few months.

It was launched division-wide yesterday at the Ramada Jarvis Hotel, Cottingley, by Keighley Division Chief Superintendent Sarah Sidney and her management team.

Invited along were district and parish councillors, neighbourhood watch members and town centre management staff.

Chief Inspector Simon Atkin, who is spearheading the Tasking initiative, said: "This is a response to people's requests for a visible presence and to have officers who are familiar with the areas. They will be meetings where people can discuss and report local issues and get feedback."

From the meetings the officer will go away, investigate, take action especially on low level crime, like youths causing a nuisance or street drinking, and then report back, he added.

The division has been split into three zones - Keighley, Bingley and Ilkley and Shipley - and within each zone tasking groups will be set up to match electoral wards, he explained.

The tasking groups will meet every three weeks with a two-hour public surgery before each meeting.

Priorities will be to focus on anti-social behaviour, youth nuisance, quality of life issues and local concerns.

The initiative has been piloted in the Craven ward, covering Steeton, Silsden and Addingham, where there have been two meetings in Silsden town hall.

Liz Trainor, chairman of the Craven Tasking group, said there had been very positive results from the two pilot meetings.

Low-level crime issues were brought forward and acted upon by the dedicated officer.

"The officer is instructed by us to go and look at these problems - children making a nuisance in the park, youths drinking and people coming out of pubs and annoying people - things that most people wouldn't normally inform the police about.

"We get a written report back and we are told what the police have done."

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