Nick Herbert meets local police commanders to discuss antisocial behaviour in villages

Arundel & South Downs MP Nick Herbert met with local police commanders on Friday afternoon (11 July) to discuss concerns raised by residents of Pulborough and Storrington about antisocial behaviour.

 

Mr Herbert met with Horsham District Commander Chief Inspector Steve Black and Inspector Paul Williams from Steyning.

The MP requested an update after meeting representatives of Storrington & Sullington Parish Council and, separately, the Pulborough Local Action Team recently, when he heard about problems in their villages.

During the meeting with the police, held at Pulborough Police Station, a number of issues were discussed, including:

  • problems of crime and antisocial behaviour in Pulborough and Storrington, including late night drinking and vandalism;

  • the need for closer co-operation between the police and local communities;
  • the presence and visibility of uniformed police officers in rural villages;
  • the potential for Forge House Community Hub in Storrington to be used as a base for Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs);
  • the potential for re-opening the public enquiry desk at Pulborough Police Station;
  • the use of Anti-Social Behaviour Orders (ASBOs) by the courts, and
  • Sussex Police's work to prevent domestic burglaries.

After hearing about efforts to tackle antisocial behaviour in Southwater, Mr Herbert offered to convene a ‘round table' discussion between police and community representatives in Pulborough and Storrington so that they could discuss their concerns and hear about measures that have been successful elsewhere in the county in dealing with the problem.

After the meeting, Chief Inspector Black commented: "Our meeting with Nick Herbert offered us an opportunity to update him on increases in police officers allocated to Neighbourhood Policing, the move of officers from the Force Road Policing Unit Operations Team into Pulborough police station and the reduction in domestic burglaries achieved in the district.  I thought it was a useful meeting and that it was a good opportunity to hear local concerns."

Nick Herbert commented: "I'm grateful to Chief Inspector Black and Inspector Williams for agreeing to meet with me.  We had a useful and frank discussion, and I'm hopeful that we will see some positive outcomes from it."

Mr Herbert added: "I will now take forward my idea of a round table discussion on antisocial behaviour so that we can all learn what more can be done to deal with this problem.  I'm grateful to the police for considering this idea and I hope that local community representatives will also want to take part."

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