Tackling Crime In Thame Together

WELL over a hundred Thame residents gathered at the town hall last night, to have their say on the issues that concern them most in their town, and came up with three priorities for a proposed ?Neighbour Action Group? to tackle.
The public meeting was one of three planned for the area (that for Chinnor tonight has been postponed because of the bad weather), to roll out Thames Valley Police?s new initiative, Neighbourhood Policing.
Neighbourhood Policing is a bottom-up, community and police partnership designed to tackle crime in a citizen-focused way. In other words, the community forms a partnership with local police who then put extra resources into tackling those crimes that most concern local people. Other agencies within the NAG also consider what they can do to help tackle the problems identified.
At last night?s meeting, residents were given the opportunity to express their particular concerns whilst police officers listed each one. Then all present were given traffic light-coloured stickers to put against the three issues that most concerned them in order of preference.
The main issues of concern that came out of the meeting were:

Vandalism to Motor vehicles in Park Street, Chinnor Road
Vandalism in Pearce Way
Drunkenness, urinating, swearing and aggressive behaviour in Lincoln Place, the alley way beside the Co-op
Vandalism and rowdy behaviour in Churchill Crescent, Southern Road in fine weather
Lack of Police visibility at critical times
Speeding ? Aylesbury Road, Chinnor Road, Oxford Road
Illegal parking ? Kings road, Queens Road, Aylesbury Road, Horton Avenue and other locations
Anti-social use of motorbikes on Phoenix Trail
Lack of activities for young people ? seen as a cause of much of the anti-social behaviour
Lack of police station manning in the evening
Lack of feedback on reported crimes
Lack of an effective response when Police call centre is contacted to report crime
Litter ? particularly on the Phoenix Trail
Offensive graffiti at the Skate Park

All age groups were represented at the meeting, the priority of the young men there appearing to be a proper, official dirt-bike track behind the sewage works, where currently they have built an unofficial one of their own. They were desperate for a local builder or someone with access to mechanical machinery, to help them cut down bushes and some trees, and to mound up earth to form a challenging track.
The suggestion is currently being considered by the town council and 21st Century Thame Partnership.

The top three priorities for those Thame citizens who voted emerged as:
First: Lack of youth provision
Second: Abuse of alcohol
Third: Vandalism

What will happen next?

Representative of local interest groups at the meeting were invited to put themselves forward to become part of the Neighbourhood Action Group for Thame, which will be launched around April next.
In the meantime, up-dates will be published in the local press and to organisations and posters will appear around the town.

Reassurances were made that although priorities had been established, the other matters of concerne raised at the meeting will not be ignored but looked at by the police?s neighbourhood teams.
It was explained that all the problems discussed were not new problems and would therefore not be able to be solved quickly, but assurances were made that they would be dealt with.

See: Link
For more information and background to Nieghbourhood Policing.

Photo: Diane Jackson, one of Thame’s PCSOs involved in Neighbourhood Policing