Chief Superintendent Peter Laverick said that he was standing in as Borough Commander on behalf of Chief Superintendent Sally Benatar, probably until mid-May. He provided a response to each of the questions set out in section 2.1 of the report:

1.    The start date for the new Basic Command Unit will be 23 May

2.    Merton will continue to be policed at full strength with dedicated ward officers and PCSOs

3.    The council’s wish to keep a police station in Wimbledon is being considered at a senior level within the Metropolitan Police. The front counter in Wimbledon will remain open until Mitcham police station has been refurbished.

4.    The Basic Command Unit will comprise five functions – emergency response, neighbourhood policing, CID investigation, safeguarding, and headquarters function.  Superintendent Guy Collings will be the lead contact for Merton.

5.    There are a number of diversionary projects already in place in Merton and these will continue.

6.    The police are committed to enforcing the PSPO to control street drinking and drinking in parks. There has been a focus on hotspots in Mitcham town centre.

In response to additional questions about the operational changes, the Borough Commander said that he would work as effectively as he could with the resources that he was given. He stressed that there would be sharing of good practice across the four boroughs in the BCU.

The Borough Commander undertook to:

·         contact the leader of the volunteer police cadets to discuss how they could assist with supporting youth clubs.,

·         find out where in Wimbledon the British Transport Police are based

·         speak to CI Phil Palmer about the operation of the PSPO in Mitcham town centre and provide the Commission with an update

In response to questions about safeguarding, the Borough Commander said that there would be more officers in the safeguarding function, compared to the other four functions, and that this would be a real increase in numbers. The police places huge emphasis on early intervention and on working in partnership. He suggested that the Chair of the Children and Young people Overview and Scrutiny panel could meet with CI Rob Applegarth, the lead officer on safeguarding. The Borough Commander has not seen the report that there had been a link to Merton in about 20% of the last 30 stabbings so could not comment at this stage but would be interested to see the analysis. 

The Borough Commander introduced the crime figures set out in Appendix 1 of the report. He said that the context for the recent 4.1% increase in total notifiable offences in Merton is one of crime reduction since 2011 and a low base compared to other boroughs. He said that overall Merton remained a low crime area, with reductions in the number of the most serious crimes. He offered to provide crime figures per 1,000 population in future.

The Borough Commander made additional points in response to questions:

·         engagement with the local community and publicity for policing successes are key to reducing the fear of crime

·         he undertook to investigate the number of rape cases and report back to the Commission

·         the police are working with schools, parents and local communities to discourage young people from carrying knives

The Overview and Scrutiny Commission RESOLVED to thank Chief Superintendent Peter Laverick and to invite the new Borough Commander to attend in September.