The Government is clear that everyone should have the security and confidence which comes from having a safe street and home.
This is central to the Government’s levelling up mission.
The Government’s sets out its strategic approach in Beating Crime Plan and the recently launched Anti-Social Behaviour Action Plan.
These two documents outline how the Government plans to do the following:
- Cut crime and antisocial behaviour (ASB)
- Reduce the number of victims of crime,
- Make the country safer
The Beating Crime Plan shows how the Government will focus efforts on ‘hotspot’ areas. Hotspots are areas, where crime is disproportionately concentrated.
Safer Streets 5
The Safer Streets Fund forms a key part of supporting local areas.
The Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner has secured funds from all previous Safer Streets Fund Rounds. (Previous decision records can be accessed here – Safer Streets 1, Safer Streets 2, Safer Streets 3, Safer Streets 4).
Safer Streets Fund – Round 5 launched in July 2023. It has an allocated budget across the country of £43m.
It will run for an 18-month period from 1 October 2023 – 31 March 2025.
The aim of round 5 is to reduce levels of the following significantly.:
- Neighbourhood Crime
- Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG)
- Antisocial Behaviour
Safer Streets 5 will target disproportionately and persistently affected areas, and, as a result, develops an evidence base to inform future investment and commissioning decisions.
Through this new round of funding, learning from previous rounds is being used to help ensure it is possible to evidence impact against the fund’s objectives.
Therefore, interventions will focus on activities, where there is evidence of positive outcomes as a result of evaluation from previous rounds.
Funding
For the first time funding is being directly awarded to Police and Crime Commissioners (PCC) as opposed to competed.
However, PCCs have to submit funding proposals to confirm they meet the requirements of the fund.
Each PCC is being allocated £1m of funding over an 18-month period . This is up to £465,000 in financial year 2023/24 (from 1 October 2023 which must be spent by 31 March 2024.)
The sum is up to £535,000 in financial year 2024/25 (to spend between 1 April 2024 and 31 March 2025).
The Home Office have indicated that a maximum of three proposals per PCC area can be submitted. The minimum budget per proposal is £200,000 with an upper limit of £500,000.
As part of the development of funding proposals, the OPCC conducted some analytical work with partners.
That was to understand and identify the areas most affected by the crime/issue types in scope across Cleveland.
Research resulted in the following three areas below being identified with the proposed interventions and deliverables submitted to the Home Office for consideration:
Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough – Central and Longlands/ Beechwood Wards (Proposal 1) with a focus on Neighbourhood Crime and Anti-Social Behaviour
Total funded requested: Up to £330,720
2023/24 – Up to £152,100
2024/25 – Up to £178,620
Funding will be allocated to the following partners:
- Middlesbrough Council – £278,800
- Cleveland Police – £26,920
- OPCC retains (communications) – £20,000
- Community First (Target Hardening Installation) – £5,000
Outputs of this funding will include the following:
- Physical home security measures
- Safer Streets Officer to tackle Anti-Social Behaviour
- Environmental Interventions
- Additional CCTV and Refuge Points
- Communications Campaigns Professional Witness Service
Stockton
Stockton – Town Centre and Ropner Wards (Proposal 2) with a focus on Neighbourhood Crime, Anti-Social Behaviour and Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG)
Total funding requested: Up to £329,720
- 2023/24 – Up to £154,410
- 2024/25 – Up to £175,310
Funding will be allocated to the following partners:
- Stockton Council – Up to £123,500
- Cleveland Police – Up to £107,220
- A Way Out – £15,000
- Empowering Women – £84,000.
Outputs of the funding will include the following:
- Improved CCTV and street lighting
- Environmental target hardening activity
- Community / residents target hardening
- Educational programme focussing on attitudinal and behavioural change for women to improve understanding and confidence in preventing and responding to VAWG and empowering women to enable change
- Education and support programme with sex workers
Hartlepool
Hartlepool – Victoria Ward (Proposal 3) will focus on Neighbourhood Crime and Anti-Social Behaviour
Total Funding Requested: Up to £333,333
- 2023/24 – Up to £155,000
- 2024/25 – Up to £178,333
Hartlepool Council will be awarded up to the full allocation of funding with the outputs including the following:
- Target Hardening packs for properties in the area and the securing of void properties
- Alley gate improvements
- Additional CCTV and improvements to street lighting
- Community Cohesion Officer to undertake community engagement, development, and capacity building. This will encourage the local community to take ownership of their area, encourage reporting of crime to the police / council, and establish Neighbourhood Watch Schemes
- Environmental Project Officer to gather information and intelligence, investigate environmental Crime and ASB, undertake alley gate checks and environmental enforcement activity.
The remaining £6,227 will split across each of the three bids and contribute to the internal costs incurred within the OPCC.
Decision 23/24 – 0014: Safer Streets Fund – Round 5 (application, 208kB)