Resources Needed to Fight Human Trafficking
Chief officers have backed the UK's signing of the EU Convention on Human Trafficking amid calls for more resources to enforce it. Jan Berry, chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales, said it was 'essential' police time and resources is used to tackle trafficking.
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Murdered Officer's Memorial Desecrated
Police are appealing for information after the memorial to murdered police officer, Stephen Oake, was desecrated. The memorial, on Crumpsall Lane, was attacked overnight on Tuesday 27th March 2007, and broken-off chunks of marble were taken from the scene.
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Policing Review
Plans to target offenders and extend public services reform to the criminal justice system are among a raft of measures unveiled by the Prime Minister yesterday. Speaking at a major conference on public service delivery, Mr Blair said that new effective prevention measures would target the 100,000 criminals who commit half of all crime.
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West Mids Hit by Unusual Distraction Burglaries
Wolverhampton residents are being warned that people falsely claiming to represent the PDSA (People's Dispensary for Sick Animals) in order to gain access to properties are operating in the area.
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Bureaucracy Cutting Ideas Wanted
Have you had a bright idea that's slashed hours of tedious form filling? If the answer is yes, then the organisers of this year's Bureaucracy Awards want to hear from you!
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Forces in Major Counter-Terrorism Exercise
Sussex Police and Surrey Police conducted a major counter-terrorism exercise between Friday 9th March and Sunday 11th March 2007. The exercise, which formed an integral part of the Home Office national counter terrorism programme, had been planned over the previous twelve months.
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Kent Holds Dog Trials
Kent Police is host to the South East Regional Police Dog Trials during the last week of March. Police dogs from Kent, Sussex and Surrey will compete to see who will go forward to represent the South East in the National Police Dog Trials.
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Groundbreaking Ceremony for Hatfield Police Station
A groundbreaking ceremony was held on Friday 16th March to officially launch the beginning of works by Willmott Dixon to construct a new Police Station for Hatfield and Headquarters for the Central Area.
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Chief Constable Welcomes HMIC Report
Chief Constable David Strang has welcomed the findings of Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Constabulary, Andrew Brown CBE QPM, and Her Majesty's Lay Inspector, Peter Daniels.
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IPCC Calls on Force to Review Firearms
The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) has recommended Staffordshire police revisit its tactics in shooting incidents. The IPCC independent investigation found that officers had acted appropriately when a man refused to lay down his gun, but raised concerns about the tactics employed at the scene.
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IPCC Welcomes Clearer Guidance
Changes to disciplinary guidance will clarify the standard of proof needed in police disciplinary hearings, according to the IPCC. The guidance on bringing disciplinary charges after an officer has been found not guilty in court has also been improved.
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Beat Manager helps Colleagues Learn Polish
A Community Beat Manager who was recognised in the national Community Police Officer of the Year Service Award is using his prize to help his colleagues pick up a new language. Wrexham based PC Keith Sinclair is spending half of his £1,500 prize money helping up to eight police officers speak Polish.
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Maidenhead Custody Suite Set to Open
The new custody suite at Maidenhead police station is expected to reopen for business in April after a major extension and refurbishment programme. The extended suite has more than double the number of cells than it had previously and provides a better environment for everyone who uses the custody facilities.
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Progress in Race Targets Slow, but Steady
The police service is making solid progress towards achieving ethnic minority recruitment targets. Peter Fahy, ACPO lead on Race and Diversity and Chief Constable of Cheshire Police, said: 'It is pleasing to note that 15 per cent of Police Community Support Officers are from minority ethnic backgrounds.'
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Met Defends Race Record
The Met has hit out at a newspaper article that accused the Commissioner of not tackling racism in his force. In a letter to the Evening Standard, the Deputy Commissioner Paul Stephenson said: 'The article mixes together a number of points about the promotion of black police officers to claim spuriously that the Commissioner says the right things on race issues, but that his actions don't match is words.'
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Fifty Year Old Crimes Reinvestigated
Thames Valley Police has set up a dedicated team to re-investigate unsolved serious cases: some of which are up to half a century old. The Dedicated Review Team is being officially launched this month with a brief to look at unsolved homicides spanning over a 50 year period in the Thames Valley area.
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Fife Police go 'On the Buses'
For the past two weeks, Fife Police have participated in Operation Coachman, which is an annual initiative where the Police, the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) and Fife Council Transportation Services check buses, coaches, minibuses and taxis used for transporting children to and from school.
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Opinions Sought on Civilianisation Programme
The Federation is asking its members for their views on Thames Valley police's move to civilianise the management of its custody suites.
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PSNI Officers Under Fire
Police in south Armagh escaped injury in the early hours of Saturday when petrol bombs were thrown into Crossmaglen police station.
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Met Launches Safer Transport Teams
Mayor of London Ken Livingstone and the Metropolitan Police Service Commissioner Sir Ian Blair visited Bexley to launch one of London's first Safer Transport teams.
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Sussex Car Plate Thieves Screwed
Sussex Police is giving away one-way screws to help motorists prevent number plate thefts. There were 438 recorded thefts of number plates across Sussex in 2006, with a further 94 so far this year.
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Wales Appoints First Asian ACC
Dave Morris has become Wales’ first Asian Black Chief Officer after being appointed to the post of Assistant Chief Constable (Corporate Intelligence) for South Wales Police.
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Most Forces Spend Money Wisely, Report Finds
ACPO has welcomed the publication of the first national assessment by the Audit Commission of the police services’ use of financial resources.
An extensive financial management evaluation of all 43 police forces and their authorities has shown that two-thirds are performing well in their use of financial resources.
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Met Recruits Youngest Ever Officer
The Met welcomed its youngest ever ‘recruit’ this week as nine year old Collin Poole of Stoke on Trent was sworn in at Hendon's law court. It was Collin's wish to Starlight, the children's charity that grants wishes to seriously and terminally ill children, that kick started his induction into the Met.
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Northants Police Team Raising Money For Victims Of Crime
14 Hours in a Canoe, 85 miles on a cycle and 1000 miles driving. Just for fun? To spot the loch ness monster? To raise money for Victim Support Northamptonshire! On 20th April a team of eight are going to do a three-day endurance trip in the Scottish highlands to raise money for Victims of Crime in Northamptonshire.
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Belfast Wins Bid to Host 2013 World Police and Fire Games
Belfast has won its bid to host the 2013 World Police and Fire Games. The decision is momentous; as this is the first time the games will ever have been held in the British Isles. As a result thousands of competitors and visitors will come to Northern Ireland for the event.
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Fife puts Officers Back on Frontline
A wide-ranging review of the effective use of police time has put the equivalent of an extra four officers back on the beat in Fife. And Fife Constabulary's Demand Management Project has led to an increase in customer satisfaction – while redirecting resources.
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Northants Tackles Kerb Crawlers
Men who have been arrested for kerb crawling in Northampton will be taking part in a ground-breaking course this week aimed at stopping them visiting prostitutes. Instead of going to court and facing the shame of a public prosecution, 11 first time offenders are being given the chance to take part in a workshop.
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Scotland's First Pub Licence Suspended
Licensees have been warned abuse it and you could lose it – following the first suspension of a public house licence under Fife Constabulary's pioneering Test Purchasing Scheme. The Central Area Licensing Board agreed to ban a Leslie pub from selling alcohol for four months after it was twice caught selling drink to under-18s.
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Sanctuary Project Praised
A project to provide safe rooms for victims of domestic violence has been praised by police. The Sanctuary project is a joint project between North Worcestershire Police and its partner organisations to provide enhanced security for victims of domestic violence.
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30 Vehicles Seized in Cross Border Operation
West Midlands Police and West Mercia Constabulary have seized more than 30 vehicles during the launch phase of a new cross-border operation. Operation Cubit has been developed to tackle vehicle crime in south Birmingham and north Worcestershire.
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Security Industry Act - Three Charged
Merseyside Police has charged three people with offences under Section 5 of the Security Industry Act. All three appeared at Liverpool City Magistrates Court on Tuesday, 20th March.
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Thames Valley PCSOs Get New Wheels
Wokingham Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs) have picked up their new car from a Reading dealership. The bright yellow Volkswagen Fox has been provided to the officers by Ridgeway Reading through a new partnership agreement.
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ACPO Reaffirms Seriousness of Cannabis Factories
Allan Gibson, ACPO lead on tackling cannabis cultivation and Commander at the Metropolitan police, said: ‘Cannabis cultivation is an increasing problem and the police service continue to tackle the issue and are identifying and closing 'factories' every day.
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Sniffer Dogs Schooled to Become 'Pound Puppies'
The doors of the new North East Region Dog Training School, based in County Durham, have officially opened. And to mark the occasion three of the first Durham Constabulary dogs being trained to detect cash demonstrated their new skill at The Barns in Spennymoor.
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Suffolk's Top Dogs
Officers in Suffolk are celebrating today as members of the Constabulary’s Dog Team won first and second place in the regional police dog trials that were hosted at Police Headquarters in Martlesham Heath, Ipswich.
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Travellers Get a Better Deal
The way Surrey Police deals with Traveller issues has been vastly improved by a Travellers' Focus Group, set up a year ago to help increase the trust and confidence between Surrey Police and the Travelling Community.
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Big Brother Racism 'Not Criminal'
Celebrity Big Brother contestants will not face charges, following an investigation by Hertfordshire Constabulary. The force conducted an investigation into allegations of racist behaviour within the Big Brother House during Celebrity Big Brother, January 2007.
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Cheshire to Attract Women to ‘Macho’ Units
Cheshire Police may introduce smaller firearms and lighter motorcycles in a bid to attract more women to units which may be seen as having a 'macho' culture.
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New 999 Service for Chinese Community
The Bristol-based charity Support Against Racist Incidents and Avon and Somerset Constabulary are launching a new card to help the Chinese community to call for help in an emergency.
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Cleveland has Neighbourhood Know-How
Forces nationwide are turning to Cleveland's know-how in the preparation to launch Neighbourhood Policing, according to the force. Officers in Hartlepool were among the first in the country to spearhead the initiative which gives every community their own locally-based bobbies who are easily accessible for help and advice.
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First Minister Introduces New Drug Detection Dog
Scotland’s First Minister Jack McConnell backed the launch of a new drug detection dog which will be used to deter people from taking drugs to the Western Isles.
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Fife Tops ABSO Powers
Powers to prevent anti-social neighbours wrecking the peace of their communities are being implemented more frequently by Fife Constabulary than any other force in Scotland.
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Fife goes Digital
21st-Century CCTV technology is helping Fife Constabulary and its partners fight crime and keep the Kingdom's communities safe. The force and Fife's Community Safety Partnership have installed a state-of-the-art digital CCTV system to replace the old analogue tape equipment.
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Back to the Frontline
More than 70 extra police officers are being recruited for front-line duties in Essex, following a recent review of HQ staffing and budgets. The review - known as FLAG 4 (Front-line Action Group) - has delivered £3.1million savings, which will pay for an extra 73 sworn police officers - comprising 28 constables and 45 sergeants.
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Drivers Ignore Mobile Laws
Central Scotland Police said it is disappointed that drivers have ignored the change in the law on mobile phones. In the first week since the offence was made endorsable 44 drivers were caught driving while using a hand-held mobile in the force area.
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PSNI Tackles Extortion Mailshot
The PSNI is targeting businesses in Portadown and Craigavon in a pilot scheme to promote an Anti-Extortion helpline. Hundreds of businesses are being sent a mailshot explaining what the helpline can do for them and listing reasons why they should call.
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More Cash to Deter Travelling Criminals
Warwickshire Police is to increase its investment in roads policing to put more pressure on travelling criminals and reduce the number of people who are killed or injured on the county's highways.
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