News

'Help us target crime concerns'

By Hugh Fort
January 27, 2010

A police chief has expressed disappointment that just 30 per cent of Bracknell people know about their local Neighbourhood Action Group (NAG).

And of those, just five per cent went to the meetings, with 18 per cent saying they did not go because they had no problems to raise, 18 per cent did not feel going would make a difference, 14 per cent were “too busy” and 11 per cent said the meetings were not at a suitable time.

Chief Inspector Simon Bowden, of Bracknell Police, said: “The responses from the survey on NAGs are disappointing.

“We have advertised them in a variety of ways, including on Facebook.

“Some are getting good attendances at their meetings, others are getting fewer than five people.

“They are working well, but we would like as many people as possible getting involved and going to the meetings.”

The NAGs were set up to help police find out about community priorities on crime and disorder.

Bracknell Forest Council published the results of its joint Neighbourhood Survey with Thames Valley Police, which show 44 per cent of the 6,628 respondees would like to see more police officers on the streets.

Chief Inspector Bowden said: “Bracknell is not going to get any more officers.

“What I have to do is make sure what we have is deployed into the right places.

“We have 23 Police Community Support Officers who are the high profile officers who are regularly seen around the borough.

“What people won’t necessarily see is the Priority Crime Team, the Detective Inspectors, Detective Sergeants, working behind the scenes."

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I was led to believe by my local NAG in Birch Hill that it was commitee members only and that the open meetings were an annual event to sum up the years work.

I went to an what was deemed an 'open' meeting last year and found it useful and was disappointed when I was told I could not attend every one.

Can someone possibly please let people know whether the local NAGs want people to attend or not and find a way to keep local people informed.

A lot of these local commumity groups tend to be run as closed shops with the same people attending, maybe they don't want others to attend and spoil their little commitees and therefore don't advertise.