Clamping down on street crime
The Walpole and Elthorne Ward police teams have jointly launched a new coordinated operation with the support of additional specialist officers drawn from across the Borough. The aim is to tackle prolific crimes including street drinking, drug dealing and general Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB). We will be targeting hotspot areas such as Dean Gardens and West Ealing Broadway. There will be a specific emphasis on tackling street drinkers in public areas, as local residents have identified this type of ASB as being their major concern because it has a detrimental impact on the whole local community. Officers will particularly enforce the Controlled Drinking Zone dispersal powers.
Already, the first two days have been very active with Operation Sparta, our visible policing support team, conducting 20 stops on our most prolific street drinkers and dispersing them from the area. The uniformed team are supported by a specialist plain clothes team and together they have arrested a man in Dean Gardens for being drunk and disorderly and failing to comply with a dispersal order, and two people for possession with intent to supply class A drugs on Leeland Terrace.
This operation runs in conjunction with Operation Freyja on Elthorne which has been targeting active drug dealing in Chignell Place. Operation Freyja has been active for the last five months and produced some good results including a multi-agency raid with the Council and ongoing plain clothes proactive work leading to 36 arrests and the closure of a ‘drug factory’.
Officers can be contacted on a dedicated mobile phone (07824 529679) or via our office number 020 8721 2949 which gives you a direct link to Police Officers to contact them and report any street drinkers congregating or causing any Anti-Social Behaviour. There is also an answerphone facility if officers are busy dealing with incidents or the 101 number; alternatively we can be contacted by our email at walpole.snt@met.police.uk.
The neighbourhood teams will not only be taking a firm line against ASB, they will also be gathering evidence to support a ‘Public Spaces Protection Order’ (PSPO) in West Ealing which when granted will provide Police Officers a number of powers to deal more robustly with street drinkers. Powers include confiscation of alcohol, dispersal of groups and banning ‘legal highs’ as well as restrictions on the use of playground equipment in Dean Gardens by adults.
Other successful multi-agency initiatives
The Police and Ealing Council’s Safer Communities Team have been working together to tackle anti-social outdoor drinking across the Borough and to identify and tackle problem areas, individuals and premises. Police Officers have been joined by outreach workers from RISE, Ealing Council’s commissioned drug and alcohol intervention service. Recently Walpole SNT in partnership with the Council have been successful in obtaining a premises closure order on Kirkfield Close as a result of resident reports of active drug dealing. Similarly, as a result of building and providing evidence against the Broadway International shop, we have achieved the revocation of their 24 hour off-licence. This should make a significant difference to the occurrence of ASB in the Walpole and Elthorne areas.
Please remember: you can always contact the Police on 101 for Non-Emergency calls. In an Emergency always dial 999.