MINUTES OF ST. LEONARD’S WARD PANEL MEETING HELD ON THURSDAY 8TH MARCH 2007 AT 7.15 P.M.

PRESENT: Lee Alley, Alan Davidson, Ruth Edwards, Rosalie Lawlor, Gillian Lunnon, Katherine Thomson-Glover, Krystyna Zarafa, Gaye Weston-Simons, Gillian Tyson, Mary Gillman, Susan Dench, Jeremy Clyne, Brian Palmer, Roger Giess, Clive Bennett, Jenny Golding, Pamela Veiga, Neal Thurlow, P.C. Rebecca Young, Sgt. Trevor Struthers, Paul Asquith, Dianne Strang, Andrew Stephenson, P.S. John Harrison, Patrick Seuer

1. Welcome

Lee Alley welcomed everyone to the meeting and introduced Chief Inspector Suzanne Wallace to the meeting. He also thanked the local Somalian community for providing the meeting with some delicious food and he urged everyone to help themselves.

2. Minutes of the Meeting dated 8th January 2007 and Matters Arising

Lee Alley reported he had met with the other chairs of the Streatham ward panels and this is done on a monthly basis. These meetings are of benefit because plans can be co-ordinated.

The amended wording of the Constitution was agreed and the Constitution as a whole was agreed on.

The signage for no cycling on the pavements is ready, but Neil Thurlow is waiting for the Highways Dept. to put them up

The Minutes were accepted.

3. Police Update

Chief Inspector Suzanne Wallace took the floor and explained that she is the Line Manager for Inspector Richard Hall and she reports to Superintendent Jonathan Tottman.

Ice Rink Shooting: CI Suzanne Wallace reported that she had been on call when the shooting happened. The response from all sections of the police was very quick, but unfortunately no arrests are imminent, but that does not mean the police will drop the inquiry. There is no evidence leading to any one individual being responsible at the moment, but a number of leads are being followed up. There is no forensic evidence and the CCTV images are of poor quality. No individual witnesses have come forward with any information. However, as a result of the shooting the police are engaging with the owner on the ice rink and the staff at the ice rink are interacting more with the groups at the discos held on Saturday nights. Nobody on the investigation team is holding the ice rink responsible for what happened and this has been accepted generally. The response borough wide is to ensure we have the appropriately trained officers to deploy firearms teams when necessary and more officers are being trained. The inspector on duty did not have the training, but has had other training about securing scenes of crime and this scene was handled very well and Operation Trident have said this.

As far as the impact on the community is concerned, people are shocked and frightened and Operation Trident held an event the next week, but there were very few people at the ice rink as this incident has had a huge impact on attendance, but it is gradually getting better. All the privately booked events, such as birthday parties and the hockey team practice have been upheld, but it is the disco which has been affected. The ice rink will stay open and the police are working with the staff to reassure them they are safe. They were naturally traumatised over the incident.

CI Wallace confirmed that the police are happy with the management of the rink and the review of the licence was just a box ticking exercise. The CCTV could be improved, but that could be like other establishments in Lambeth. It is difficult for the ice rink management to decide how much money to spend on improvements because of the proposed development of the site.

In response to a comment about there being no arrests made, CI Wallace appealed to people at the meeting to pass on any information to the police.

Phoenix Project:

CI Wallace reported that the Borough Commander Martin Bridger has been concerned that in certain pockets in the community black youths are killing each other. Commander Bridger wanted to set up a process to get the community to engage with these people to show them another way. The Phoenix project is run by staff who work with young people who have been identified as being vulnerable and close to being sent to prison. It is a mentoring project and some of the mentors have been in prison themselves. The young people do seem to be relating to them. Diversionary tactics are employed and it is on a one to one basis. The mentors also are very close to the ground and may become aware of information themselves. These individuals have expressed concern about Trident’s approach to the community and as a result some people are afraid to go to Trident with information they have. Commander Bridger is working very hard to break this log jam. Trident does have tried and trusted method of protecting witnesses, but some people do not want to have to move away and start a new life and Trident would rather drop a case than reveal a witnesses identity.

In response to a question by Lee Alley, CI Wallace said Trident’s success rate was very good and Commander Bridger gives updates at the CPCG meetings.

Lee Alley confirmed that people can call crime stoppers and use the St. Leonard’s ward web site to give information anonymously and requested people to spread the word about the web site.

Brian Palmer commented that the tragic incident underlines an unwelcome trend that there appears to be quite a lot of armed robberies in the High Road and there is a high rate of assaults on people compared to some wards. There had also been an unreported shooting in Streatham Vale Park. In the past when crime issues have been raised, we have been compared to Brixton, but this is fatuous as we are not like Brixton, but to the residents of Streatham it is a worry. CI Wallace referred to these as specifically cash in transit robberies and reported that Streatham High Road has the dubious title of being in the best in Europe for cash in transit robberies. The police are working with various bodies and companies, such as building societies and security people, on this.

In respect of the increase in violent crime, the police have looked at intelligence and how it is gathered. There are more firearms of all sorts from east and western Europe and their entry to this country comes down to border controls. Firearms appear to be the weapon of choice at the moment and not knives or machetes.

Sgt. Struthers reported:

Motor vehicle crime: theft from and theft of has decreased by 14% on this time last year in Streatham and Gypsy Hill. St. Leonard’s ward’s overall performance is a -28% reduction. The figure had been going up on a monthly basis this past year, so this is good news.

Street Crime: St. Leonard’s is the ward with the highest reported street crime and our targets are set higher than other wards, but we are performing well and we are still below the set target.

We are performing under target for theft snatches and pick pockets and we are +11% over all on performance in 2006. The hot spots are around the A23, transport hubs, bus stops and bus routes, school home time and people being around late at night.

Burglary, residential: -21% on last year and on looking like reaching the target set. Around St. Leonard’s the police feel residents in multi-occupancy accommodation need to be educated about better security as these premises are being targeted and land lords are known to take short cuts with regard to door security in these premises. The crime prevention officer is working on this. Lee Alley commented that there are a number of joint action groups who have this item as a main concern. It is a London wide problem.

Lee Alley also asked about whether there is a legal minimum standard of lock for properties and the answer was no. Gillian Lunnon asked if better security for front doors for multi-occupancy buildings could be a requirement for planning rules. Councillor Palmer said he would think about this.

Sgt. Struthers reported that the priorities set at the last meeting were going well, but unfortunately, due to the shooting at the ice rink, priorities had been temporarily changed.

CI Wallace reported that Sgt. Struthers will be leaving and is going to the Metropolitan Police Department of Professional Standards. CI Wallace said she wished to express her thanks for Sgt. Struther’s commitment and hard work to the SNT initiative and wished him well for his new job. Lee Alley expressed his thanks to Sgt. Struthers and said the ward panel had been very pleased to work with him and he has been a good leader of the SNT and we will miss him.

P.C. Rebecca Young introduced herself to the meeting. She has 2.5 years in the police and joined the SNT in January 07 to replace Carol Rose. She has been working hard on getting to know the area, e.g. she has tried to map out the worst streets for burglary, hold an open meeting to offer crime prevention advice and find out what the residents’ concerns are. Another example is the examination of vehicle crime. It was not in the area she suspected, i.e. around Streatham Common station, but in Conyers Road. The owners of the vehicles were sent cards through the post informing them of how they were encouraging thieves, e.g. leaving valuables on show.

There has been high visibility policing, but PC Young said she would like to do more under cover operations.

Street drinking: this is a big problem and there is a wide range of people involved. PC Young is going to talk to people at the Spires and Neil Thurlow. She would like to obtain dispersal powers from the local authority to move people on and eventually she would like a no drinking bye-law to be introduced.

4. Reports by Officers

Paul Asquith reported on a London Borough of Lambeth (LBL) and Drug and Alcohol Team (DAT) commissioned research project by DrugScope on the use of qat in the Somalian population of Lambeth. Paul Asquith described how qat is a native shrub to Kenya and Ethiopia, which is chewed by Somalians in Somalia, but problems arise with a change of use by Somalians in the U.K. because they spend more time chewing it here, than they do in Somalia. As a result, this report was commissioned to look at drug use in the Somalian community and the related social problems which affect this community.

There is little information on how much qat is being used in the borough, but work is being done on under achievement in the Somalian community and young Somalians in school. This report has produced some very good research, one example being the use of qat among Somalian women. A question was asked if this meant Somalian women were gaining equality in their community by going out and buying and chewing qat, but the women arrange for the delivery of qat to their homes and use it there, thus increasing their isolation. The research has also uncovered that 77% of the 354 people questioned are regular users. The problem with prolonged chewing of qat is that the men (being the ones who normally work) are unable to work and what money they have is being directed towards the purchase of qat and families suffer. The average spend per user is £780/yr. There is some evidence of polydrug use, but this was confined to alcohol and cannabis and was mostly amongst the under-25s.

The drug is imported to this country and is legal here, although in some European countries and the U.S.A. it is not. The U.K. is used as a stepping stone for the importers to the U.S.A. and Canada and white Britons are being used as mules because the U.S. authorities recognise Somalians by their appearance. The outlawing of qat has been caught up in the civil war in Somalia and after being banned by one government, it has been permitted by the new government.

It was also discovered that a lot of the Somalians are very well educated to degree level with a lot of experience of work in their own country, but 50% are unemployed and there is a clear issue around social deprivation and waste of talent.

The impact on health is that regular qat users reported a range of physical and mental health issues and, unsurprisingly, over 50% of users regularly smoked cigarettes as part of their habit. There is a dual diagnosis problem with qat users presenting with mental health and drug abuse symptoms and as a result they fall between two stools and directing them to the correct agencies is proving difficult. This has implications for the borough as service providers. The Somalian community is also reluctant to visit their G.P.s as there is a stigma attached to the ‘western’ clinical/medical approaches to health care and some Somalians would prefer to practice traditional remedies and visit their mosques for help. The women were even more reluctant to approach their G.P.s.

It is not as addictive as crack cocaine, but is still mildly addictive. It does not lead to anti-social behaviour, but the Somalian community is divided about whether it should be legal or not. No acquisitive crime is associated with qat and it is regarded as an internal Somalian problem.

Paul Asquith is happy with the decision to keep it legal here because it stops the use being pushed underground and proper monitoring can take place.

The report’s principal recommendations are:

• To continue funding the project at current levels, seek partnership funding with the aim of employing 2 full-time members of staff.

• Extend the existing partnership arrangement with Fanon Resource Centre to include other stimulant services in the borough, where appropriate.

• Closer co-ordination with other statutory health and mental health professionals, as well as community and voluntary sector groups working in this area to enable better referrals for qat users and promote an effective model of care for them.

The research also uncovered the ignorance of the size of the Somalian population in the borough and it is 2-3 times larger than thought. In the 2001 Census there was a suggested figure of 982, but if comparisons are made with school enrolments over the last 5 years, council tenants, private rented accommodation and those who stay with friends (N.F.A.), this could lead to a figure of 2,000+. These facts have implications for the borough.

Community relations with the police are very good and positive compared to other areas in London. This is a testament to the hard work put in by the police and Paul Asquith thanked Sgt. Struthers for his hard work.

CPCG Meeting: Lee Alley reported that due to his attendance at an earlier meeting he had missed the discussion on the shooting incident at the ice rink.

He reported that there had been a discussion on the closing of the mental A&E department at the Maudsley Hospital. This is the only mental A&E unit in the
country and the opposition has been quite vociferous. Lee Alley said he will be reporting more about Section 17.

ACTION: LEE ALLEY

St. Leonard’s Church meeting re. ice rink shooting: Cllr. Mark Bennett called the meeting and it was attended by various representatives of bodies such as Keith Hill, M.P., Superintendent Tottman, Leroy Jackson of the Phoenix Project, Wayne Row, Mark Rowe, Lee Alley and Alan Davidson, and Colleen Blackman the chair of Streatham Wells Ward Panel.

The meeting was a community calming exercise although no action plan was devised and no more new information was relayed to the meeting.

Lee Alley said he asked Superintendent Tottman if he would implement Section 60 stop and search powers of the police. Superintendent Tottman declined, but it has later transpired that these powers are being deployed in certain areas.

Lee Alley asked Keith Hill, M.P. if televised evidence would be allowed in court and the response was no on the recommendation of the security services.

In response to a question from Alan Davidson, we are getting another PCSO from 19th March, 2007.

Cllr. Clive Bennett reported he had been dissatisfied with Superintendent Tottman’s response to a question he had asked.

Lee Alley reported he had been interviewed by the local guardian newspaper
about the scrapping of the wardens and its impact on the investigation of the shooting at the ice rink.

5. Current Community Safety Issues Requiring Attention

The engagement with gangs of youths is to continue.

Street drinking will become a problem as the weather gets better. The demographics of the perpetrators of street drinking have changed and it is more eastern European young men who are drinking. Residents from the Glebe reported to the meeting their constant problems of men congregating on the other side of the boundary fence, in the church yard, urinating against the fence, sex taking place in public, bottles being thrown over the fence into their gardens, some times fights break out. All these things can happen at any time of the day and some men are sleeping rough in the church yard.

Ruth Edwards reported she is experiencing similar problems around the Synagogue.

Streatham Green is being used by the usual suspects and the men in the church yard are not associated with them. It is thought that the users of the Spires Centre are aware they must not use the church yard because if they are caught they will be denied access and the services of the Spires Centre. There is a sign in Polish close by saying do not use the church yard and workers from St. Mungo’s charity are working with Inspector Richard Hall and Superintendent Tottman on this. Contact is trying to be made with the Polish community in the area and St. Leonard’s church is happy to close the grounds when requested.

It was reported that Streatham Wells use geographical priorities for their area and the question was raised whether we should use this method too. In response P.C. Young said she was not convinced about this and cited her own research in motor vehicle crime which had surprised her. It was resolved to stick with our original method.

The question was raised about whether there has been an increase in the number of sex slaves in residences. The meeting was told that if anyone had any suspicions about a premises they should call the Police or the S.N.T. who would refer the matter to the Vice Squad.

A request was made for attention to be kept on the youths who congregate at the top end of Babington Road at the junction with Ambleside Avenue.

Maintaining good relations and trust with the Somalian population is to continue.

6. Priorities and suggested new priorities

1. Street drinking and problem drinking around the ward.
2. Street crime and theft from vehicles.
3. Robbery from the person.
4. Pavement cycling.

7. Any Other Business

Jeremy Clyne wished to raise the matter of a letter to the South London Press from Alan Davidson who appeared to the attacking the wardens scheme. By signing himself as Vice Chair of the St. Leonard’s ward panel it looked as though he was representing the panel. Alan Davidson replied that he did not attack the wardens, he supported the S.N.T. and the P.C.S.O.s, and was clarifying and responding to the position of Cllr Clyne's previous letter in the paper. It was stated that he was not representing the views of the panel and discussion of the letter was halted at that point by the Chair.

8. Date of Next Meeting

The date of the next meeting will be Tuesday 8th May, 2007 in the meeting room of the Synagogue, Prentis Road.