Harry Cohen
Community Action Teams
Over the past few months I have been delighted to attend a number of events in Birchwood including the annual Birchwood in Bloom presentation evening and the opening of the new art block at Birchwood Community High School. In addition many local business people, representatives of charities and town councillors attended a dinner I hosted at Birchwood Centre at which the Paymaster General Dawn Primarolo MP and the General Secretary of USDAW John Hannett were guest of honour.
The police Community Action Team (CAT) at Risley along with the local Community Support Officers (CSOs) have pioneered a new style of policing in Warrington and I was delighted to see that in the recent Queen’s Speech there are proposals which will further assist the police and community groups win the battle against litter, graffiti and vandalism. Cheshire is to get funding for more CSOs and they will get powers to issue on-the-spot fines for litter louts and vandals. The Clean Neighbourhoods Bill proposes measures to extend fixed penalty notices to offences like littering, fly tipping, graffiti and fly-posting and extends powers to tackle noise nuisance. There are also proposals to give councils the power to remove abandoned vehicles quickly, without having to wait weeks and weeks before action can be taken. It is ludicrous that if you park in the wrong space you can be towed within 24 hours, but if you abandon your vehicle in a residential street it has to be a risk to public health before the council can act immediately.
Laws that strengthen neighbourhood policing by freeing up officers for front line duties can only be good for our communities and help to make our streets safer and more secure places to live.
