£1.6m for Safer Streets across Suffolk

Following a successful bid to the Home Office, the Police and Crime Commissioner for Suffolk has secured over £990k from the Safer Streets 5 Fund to support a variety of initiatives to address anti-social behaviour, violence against women and girls, and neighbourhood crime across Suffolk. Match funding and in-kind contributions from partners will make this up to over £1.6m over two years.

Suffolk’s Police and Crime Commissioner Tim Passmore said:
“This is undoubtedly excellent news for Suffolk and once again demonstrates how the power of collaboration with community safety partners benefits our county.

“Whilst Suffolk is one of the safest areas in the country nevertheless there are specific areas where much more needs to be done to tackle and prevent crime and anti-social behaviour.

“I really believe the Safer Streets 5 funding will have a very positive impact on community safety and therefore help improve the quality of life for homes and businesses in these areas.

“The previous three successful bids clearly demonstrate how targeted initiatives can act as a strong catalyst for permanent change – in short a great result for us all.”

East Suffolk Council has been allocated £333,887 to fund higher quality CCTV cameras in Lowestoft, provide outreach activities for young people, who have been excluded, or who are at risk of being excluded, who are perpetrating, or at risk of perpetrating, ASB and neighbourhood crime.

Ipswich Borough Council’s allocation of £333,300 will be focused on a number of hotspot areas across the town which experience sustained anti-social behaviour. These include small shopping parades, churchyards, riverside areas and areas within the town centre. This will include CCTV, Crimestoppers Zones, an ASB awareness campaign, improved lighting in public spaces, better gating and fencing, youth and adult outreach support and environmental improvements.

Funding of £323,836 will focus on increasing the feeling of safety and personal security for residents and visitors in west Suffolk by focusing on violence against women and girls, anti-social behaviour and acquisitive crime. This will fund CCTV improvements, educational outreach work with young people targeting behaviour and attitudes and the impact on victims, environmental improvements, training and awareness on Violence Against Women and Girls and ASB, and target hardening measures such as property marking, home security and awareness raising. The chosen interventions for each crime time will be targeted to specific geographic areas within Bury St Edmunds, Haverhill, Newmarket, Sudbury and Stowmarket, Mildenhall, Brandon, Cornard and Needham Market.

The Home Office funding of £991,023 was conditional on partner contributions to the total of 50% of the funding granted. Match funding of £706,649 has been generated through a contribution from the Pooled Business Rate fund of £150k and in-kind contributions from each local authority, Suffolk County Council, Suffolk Constabulary and the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner.

Home Office funding for Safer Streets 5 has been allocated over two funding periods. A grant of £456,023 has been received for Year 1.