*BUSINESS CRIMECouncillor Mark Burns-Williamson Chair of West Yorkshire Police AuthorityAndSuperintendent Simon Whitehead

11 March 2008

*West Yorkshire Police Authority 17 Members 9 Councillors (3 Leeds, 2 Bradford, 2 Kirklees, 1 Wakefield and 1 Calderdale) Councillors reflect the political balance across West Yorkshire (4 Labour, 3 Conservative, 2 Liberal Democrat) 3 Magistrate Members (until 2008) 5 Independent Members 23 Full/Part Time Support Staff

*How We WorkMain Committee Structure Full AuthorityMeets 5 times a yearPerforms key statutory functions e.g. budget setting, approving the Policing PlanOverview of high profile Force projects e.g. Neighbourhood Policing Delegated responsibility for scrutiny of other Force activity to the 7 main committees, which each meet 4 times a yearEach Committee has 7 Members and two alternatesOther Committees that meet less often e.g. Senior Appointments Committee, Standards CommitteeOther Working GroupsSpecialist Policing

*Business CrimeBusinesses are more at risk of crime than private households. Reducing the risk of crime helps to protect profits and makes sure the people who work with/for you are safe.Crime and the fear of crime have a negative effect on the quality and use of town and city centres, leading to: Fewer customers Less customer choice Less investment Lower profit Less employment opportunities A downturn in the local economy and community

*Business CrimeThe Authority continues to be concerned about business crime. Following consultation with local businesses we were told the main issues were: Need for information to be available e.g. who to contact, crime prevention tips, access to local information Business crime to be given a higher priority The reporting of business crime and how is it responded to /recorded by the police (Lack of) feedback provided by the police Need for improved engagement between businesses and local services

*Action Taken So Far

WYP has improved information for businesses on its website and WYPA have linked to the new CRIME SEEN! website. Contact information, crime prevention tips, photographs of prolific offenders, patterns of crime and crime hotspots are being provided to CRIME SEEN! for the new partnership.Reporting of all crimes should be made initially to the Police but information provided into the CRIME SEEN! NBIS system will also be made available to the Police.Planned improvements to feedback to both victims of crime and witnesses.

*Business Crime PartnershipsWest Yorkshire Police are active partnership members in watch groups across the District.Key objectives include: Targeting prolific and other priority offenders; Building strong effective partnerships; Using resources more effectively; and Securing the future prosperity of the district/town/city.This CRIME SEEN! partnership model will join partners across the Wakefield District if it is successful going forward it could become the basis of a Regional model that would share information surrounding travelling criminals affecting businesses.

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In Wakefield, priority crime is down.Data for April 07 to Feb 08 compared to thesame period the previous year:

Crime Statistics for Wakefield Over the last year, crime in the district has fallen by 11%. This represents 4665 fewer crime victims.

vs. last year% changeCriminal Damage-1184-15.18%Robbery-1-0.56%Violent Crime-874-12.02%Burglary Other-166-6.36%Burglary Dwelling-184-10.30%Theft of Vehicles-161-12.16%Theft from Vehicles-271-10.53%Total crime-3690-11.31%

*Neighbourhood Policing West Yorkshire Police continues to support the expansion and enhancement of Neighbourhood Policing which impacts on everyone including the business community. As of 3 March 2008 the number of Neighbourhood Policing Teams in the Wakefield district has increased from 3 to 7. Each team will be led by a local Police Inspector and the team boundaries will replicate those of the local Council wards. The teams will work seven days a week and their focus will be on delivering excellent locally based policing services. NPTs aim to make communities more confident by visibly targeting criminals. Another aim is to create regular opportunities to tell the communities they serve what they are doing to make neighbourhoods safer and more secure places to live and work.

*New NPT Structure1x Inspector3 x Sergeants11 x PCs6 x PCSOs1x Inspector3 x Sergeants13 x PCs9 x PCSOs1x Inspector3 x Sergeants36 x PCs12 x PCSOs1x Inspector3 x Sergeants22 x PCs9 x PCSOs1x Inspector3 x Sergeants15 x PCs7 x PCSOs1x Inspector3 x Sergeants25 x PCs12 x PCSOs1x Inspector3 x Sergeants17 x PCs11 x PCSOs

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*Are these crime types taking place in your area?burglaryserious violenceyouth nuisancevehicle crimeanti-social behaviourWhere were the crime hotspots last month?What types of crime are occurring in your area?How can you stop yourself becoming a victim of crime?

*The Future

Success so far 33.8% - But where now? Partnerships Businesses, Police and Community.New Technologies ANPR (Automatic Number Plate Recognition).Offender focus not Offence focus.

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