Office of Northamptonshire
Police, Fire and Crime
Commissioner
Licensed premises of all kinds across Northamptonshire are being encouraged to take part in a pioneering new scheme to help make their venue more safe and secure for the benefit of customers, staff, and the wider community.
Northamptonshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Stephen Mold is asking premises to take part in Licensing SAVI (Safety and Vulnerability Initiative), the first ever national policing award for venues that helps them meet their statutory requirements and police and council licensing objectives.
The Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner is paying the fee for licensed premises that register for an assessment before the end of March and says the scheme is part of his plans to tackle violence against women and girls and make our towns safer.
Stephen said: “I want to encourage as many licensed premises as possible to give themselves a health check and take the Licensing SAVI assessment. My ambition is for every licensee right across the county to take part and show their customers that they take safety seriously.
“By working in partnership with venues around the county, we can provide safer and more secure places. As Commissioner, I am committed to doing everything practical I can to make women and girls safer.”
Venues that pass the accreditation are awarded a star rating that they can display on their premises to show their customers the effort they have made to improve safety and security.
Work with licensed premises is part of a wider programme, spreading across many years, to promote the safety of women and make the whole county safer.
A campaign will be launched at the end of March to raise awareness of the impact harassment can have, and to start a conversation about respectful behaviour.
The campaign will complement environmental improvements such as better lighting and help points in parts of Northampton, and enforcement by Northamptonshire Police to target the perpetrators of crime.
Working out what you want to do for a living can often be difficult but for young people considering joining the emergency services the Cadet scheme can help set them on their way.
The Northamptonshire Emergency Services Cadets helps to arm young people aged between 13 and 18 with some of the key skills they would need to join any of the emergency services – whether it’s as a firefighter, police officer or paramedic.
Cadets attend weekly sessions in term time to learn the skills of the trade, as well as volunteering within their local community to make a positive impact and take part in events and parades. When cadets turn 16, they can then specialise in one of the three emergency services.
Michelle Bates is the Youth Engagement Officer for Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service and is the Unit Commander for the specialist Fire Cadets.
She said: “We can give transferable skills which they can take into any working career. Things like team building and first aid for example, whichever job you choose to do you will need those types of skills. It’s something they can take away with them into their career, whether it’s in the emergency services or not.”
One cadet who does want to become a firefighter though is 18-year-old Bradley Roberts, from Kettering.
He said: “I chose fire specialism because I have always wanted to be a firefighter. I want to help people on their worst days and be there for people when they need us.
“I would say to anyone thinking of joining the cadets to go for it. It really boosts your confidence in every single way, and you can continue to go along that career path if you want to.”
To find out more about the Emergency Services Cadets, whether it’s signing up as a Cadet or becoming an adult volunteer leader within the scheme, please visit www.nescadets.co.uk
The iconic 27-feet-tall Knife Angel, created from 100,000 knives and blades confiscated by the 43 Police Forces across the country, will be visiting Northampton next month thanks to funding from The Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner. The visit forms part of the ‘Save a Life, surrender your Knife’ campaign aimed at spearheading change and focusing on early intervention, education and raising awareness of the scale and severity of knife crime in the UK.
C2C Social Action, in partnership with Northamptonshire Police, the Office of Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, West Northants Council (WNC), schools, clubs and churches from around the county, has arranged for the Knife Angel to come to Northamptonshire to highlight the enormity of knife crime in the UK and provide a focus in delivering educational workshops to the younger generation.
Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Stephen Mold said: “The Knife Angel is a stark reminder of the devastating impact that knife crime can have on individuals, families and communities. I have made a commitment to deliver robust enforcement and awareness campaigns to reduce the number of knives on our streets and contributing to this nationwide campaign sends a powerful message that we will not tolerate knife crime in our county.”
The statue will be on display at the All Saints Church plaza in Northampton town centre for two weeks from Friday, 29 April to Friday, 13 May.
Work is continuing on the Safer Streets Project that will see homes on the Hemmingwell estate in Wellingborough made more secure and the environment improved to help deter crime.
Northamptonshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Stephen Mold secured £400,000 from the Government’s Safer Streets fund to carry out the improvements.
A series of community events has been held, where residents have been given home security advice, backed up by a selection of free home security products to meet their personal needs. They have also received support from Crimestoppers and local Neighbourhood Watch members, who hope to start several new schemes in the area as a result.
Several properties have already received replacement doors that are more secure – £216,000-worth of doors are being replaced by the money secured by the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, and this funding is being matched by Greatwell Homes, which means that both front and rear doors can be replaced.
The installation of CCTV on the estate has already begun, funded from the Commissioner’s Safer Streets grant and installed by North Northamptonshire Council. The installation will be complete by April and follows overwhelming support by residents during a consultation.
Stephen Mold said: “I am really pleased to have been able to support Hemmingwell residents with practical improvements to increase security and I am sure they will help to tackle key issues of crime and anti-social behaviour on the estate.
“It was good to work with the team at Greatwell Homes to help identify and implement these measures and we are grateful for their contribution to match the funding and help even more work take place.”
A 24/7 telephone helpline is open in Northamptonshire to report incidents of Hate Crime and receive help, support, advice, and guidance.
The helpline is operated by Stop Hate UK – a national charity that provides independent and confidential support to people who are affected by all forms of Hate Crime – has been running since October.
It is funded jointly by Northamptonshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Stephen Mold, West Northamptonshire Council and North Northamptonshire Council.
Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Stephen Mold said: “The first contact for victims of Hate Crime is vitally important and if they receive a bad response they could be lost to services and never have the confidence to report again. Hopefully this helpline will demonstrate that they can access expert support and be assured that any report they make will be robustly dealt with.”
The Stop Hate Line is open 24 hours a day, every day of the year on 0800 138 1625. The helpline is also available by text message on 07717 989 025 and by email to talk@stophateuk.org. British Sign Language (BSL) users can report via the interactive BSL link at www.stophateuk.org
Secondary school pupils and parents in Kettering are set to benefit from a new scheme supported by Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Stephen Mold to improve parking at school pick up and drop off times.
Pupils from Kettering Buccleuch Academy took part in a competition to design the ‘Park and Stride’ sign for the parking area just five minutes from the school to ease congestion around the school gates and keep people safe.
The competition was run by local social enterprise Brightwayz, supported by North Northamptonshire Council, and funded by the Office of Northamptonshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner.
Northamptonshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Stephen Mold, who funded the scheme, said: “This is a fantastic, proactive scheme and I’m delighted to work with Kettering Buccleuch Academy and Brightwayz on this.
“Ensuring the safety of our children is of paramount importance to me and my objectives as the Commissioner, and the active travel projects from Brightwayz go a long way towards helping this. Hopefully these signs can not only help people choose a more active and sustainable way of getting to school, but it can also reduce the amount of traffic near the school and the likelihood of any serious incidents.”