Date for the diary - Public meeting called to discuss how to best access Met services in the future

Dear All, 

See pasted below a press release from Haringey Met asking people to come to a meeting on 20th September at Civic Centre to discuss Mayor's plans for how best to access the police now that we live in a digital age. This is linked to a consultation from the Mayor which you can take part in until 6 October. Be good to see people there. Thanks Christina D

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Haringey Met invites you to a Public Meeting to hear the plans from the Mayor of London and the Metropolitan Police Service for changing the way the public access the police in Haringey

Haringey, London, September 08 2017  -  The Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC) supported by the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) has opened a London-wide consultation on a new Public Access and Engagement Strategy for policing and wants to hear the opinions and thoughts of local residents on the proposed changes in the Borough of Haringey. To that end Haringey Police has organised a public meeting to be held at the Civic Centre, Wood Green on 20^th September from 18.30 – 20.00.

The ways that the public use MPS services are changing. Just 8 percent of crimes are now reported in police front counters, down from 22 percent from 10 years ago, and this number continues to fall.  Most crimes are now reported by telephone and with the recent trial of online reporting, the MPS found over 1200 crimes per week reported on digital and online channels. To reflect these shifts, this consultation project will now rethink where all London boroughs locate their police and how they can be more accessible to the public.

Explaining the changes proposed in Haringey, Borough Commander Helen Millichap commented “The strategy’s proposals outline the current state of public access and engagement and what the future might look like across all of London, and this includes the guaranteed future provision of one 24 hr police station on each borough.  In Haringey, this is proposed to be in Tottenham, located on a new site close to the existing station. The existing station will not close until the new site is open.”

Superintendent Nigel Brookes, who is in charge of neighbourhood policing in Haringey explained “There are many challenges facing the police service, including making sure people can contact us in various different ways. The proposals take account of the changing ways that people and police use technology. Increasingly for many that means using mobile online services, telephone, or internet.  You will see over the coming months our officers being equipped with mobile devices meaning they do not need to be behind the scenes within police buildings, but can be out on the street bringing crime reporting services directly to the public. The proposals also aim to reduce inefficiency as many front counter services are under-used. The proposals will help the MPS ensure that we continue to invest in our frontline. This does mean that across London some police buildings are expected to close, including Hornsey police station”.

The MOPAC Consultation of Public Access and Engagement can be found at https://www.london.gov.uk/what-we-do/mayors-office-policing-and-crime-mopac/mopac-consultations/share-your-views-accessing-met  The consultation will end on 06 October 2017