The Safer Newport Partnership has reported a significant drop in late night crime and antisocial behaviour in Newport City Centre so far this year.
Gwent Police figures comparing the first six months of this year with the same period in 2009 (January to June) show that incidents between the hours of 6pm and 6am in the city centre are down by 20.5% – or 254 fewer incidents than the previous year.
When the figures are broken down further, violent crime is down 6.4% (13 fewer crimes) and antisocial behaviour is down a massive 34.7% (180 fewer incidents).
One of the biggest challenges police officers face in Newport is keeping people safe in the city centre at night.
As well as providing extra officers at peak times, Gwent Police has been working closely within the Safer Newport partnership to encourage people to drink responsibly.
A range of initiatives have been introduced to send clear messages to those on a night out, particularly during busy periods.
These initiatives, which are ongoing, include:
- Police officers communicate constantly with door staff, CCTV operators, street pastors and taxi marshals.
- Street pastors: local church member volunteers who help the emergency services by providing a friendly, non-threatening presence.
- The City Centre CCTV suite has 46 cameras that are operational 24 hours a day, 365 days a year to help detect and prevent crime
- On busy nights the Welsh Ambulance Service have a roving triage, with support from St John’s Ambulance, to treat people with minor injuries in the city centre to free-up the Royal Gwent Hospital.
- Taxi marshals help people to get home safely. Their presence had reduced incidents of disorder and violence.
The work of the Safer Newport Partnership in the city centre during December 2009, involving the above initiatives, was recognised as best practice in the Home Office’s ‘Alcohol Priority Partnerships’ publication this year.
