Sussex Police, working with Local Business

Commencing in September 2011 we will be posting information on this page to update our members and site users.  More to follow soon. In the interim here are the first items for you to read.

Download PDF: latest Brighton & Hove Division Newsletter

Sussex police will commence Community messaging in 2011. If you would like to recieve the emails click here http://www.sussex.police.uk/your-neighbourhood/community-messaging

Sussex Gets Safer, read more

Sussex Police Chief Constable Martin Richards has spoken of "putting the public at the heart of policing" as he builds a force fit for the future and faces the challenge of the £52 million budget cuts expected by 2015.

The five year plan to reduce spending while providing the best possible service to the people of Sussex is well underway, under the Serving Sussex 2015 programme of work. The precise amount the Force will have to save will not be known until sometime after the Government's autumn spending review.

Chief Constable Richards explained: "The spending challenge provides an opportunity for us to put people, not paperwork, at the heart of policing. This means focusing on what matters most to the public and freeing our officers and staff from bureaucracy to do just that.

"Jobs cuts are inevitable for both police officers and staff, but we aren't simply becoming a smaller Force, we're fundamentally changing the way we police to put people at the centre of all we do. This means unburdening officers and staff from unnecessary paperwork and process, freeing them to use their initiative and respond to local needs.

"The budgetary situation is not of our making and public organisations across the country are facing similar challenges. But although we have no choice in saving money, we're working hard to ensure that improving the way we police is our driving principle, not desperate cost-cutting.

"We’re working closely with the Police Authority to scrutinise where we can streamline processes. Of course we don’t want any of our people to lose their jobs, but this is a reality when faced with spending cuts of this magnitude."

Current estimates show that there are likely to be 1,050 posts affected, of which 500 are police officer roles, but Mr Richards stressed that the Force is still "a long way from final decisions".

He added: "We are still in the very early stages of this process and these are the best estimates possible at this time. Specific roles that could be affected have not yet been identified. We are keeping the Police Federation, Unison and other staff organisations fully aware as the project progresses, so they can assist in supporting anyone likely to be affected."

Steve Waight, Vice-Chairman of Sussex Police Authority, said: "There are some very tough decisions that have had to be made in order to achieve necessary savings, and further difficult choices are still to come.

"Working closely with Sussex Police, the Police Authority has already made some key decisions to make savings and these post reductions are an inevitable part of this process. The October meeting of the Police Authority will be a difficult one where hard choices and the further realities of the budget savings will be discussed.

"Whilst the Police Authority will seek to ensure that the quality of policing in Sussex is not affected, undoubtedly difficult judgments will need to be made which may result in changes to the way Sussex is policed in the future."

 

Crime has dropped again in Sussex and more offenders are being brought to justice.

Annual crime statistics for 2010/11 released by the Home Office on Thursday (July 14) show total crime down by 3,815 offences (3.8%). Around 30% of crimes are solved, against the national average of 28%.

Burglary of people's homes has been falling for more than 15 years and a further 11.2% decrease has reinforced that Sussex homes are among the safest in the country. Sussex has the fifth lowest burglary rate in England and Wales with fewer than ten offences a day.

One of only two areas to show an increase is sexual assault with 37 more reported offences (2.6%), which is believed to be down to an increasing confidence in reporting by victims. Drug offences are also up, but this is largely due to the effects of the reclassification of cannabis.

Other areas of violent crimes have seen decreases, with overall violent crime down by 245 incidents (1.1%), 243 fewer cases of violence against the person (-1.2%) and 39 fewer robberies (-4.2%). This reduction in robbery bucks the national trend where there was an increase of 1.4%.

Tackling anti-social behaviour is a priority for the public and for Sussex Police. For the first time, the report includes anti-social behaviour incidents with a 9% reduction in Sussex against the national average reduction of 8%.

The report also includes British Crime Survey data, which shows a significant improvement in the number of people who think that Sussex Police do an excellent or good job - 64% compared to 59% nationally.

Commenting on the figures, Deputy Chief Constable Giles York said: "Given the challenges facing the Force at this time, this report makes very encouraging reading. It must be remembered that behind the pages of figures and statistics are real people and in Sussex there are nearly 4,000 fewer victims of crime this year. This supports our priority to maintain a quality service to keep serving Sussex.

"These real people are also telling us that they are increasingly confident in our policing with nearly two thirds believing that we are doing a good or even excellent job. This job is being done by a dedicated team of officers and staff, often in the face of adversity, sometimes in the face of very real personal danger. Public satisfaction with their service is a tangible recognition of their professionalism, integrity and commitment.

"Now we must concentrate on maintaining this improvement against a background of unprecedented change in policing. It is important that we continue to work closely with our partners to make the maximum use of our resources and together we are determined to drive down crime and anti-social behaviour yet further as part of our commitment to serving Sussex."