Illegal parkers in our sights in 2017
Stirling Area Commander, Chief Inspector Lynn Ratcliff, on the work of local officers to tackle public concerns and priorities over the festive period.
Readers of the Observer will be aware that over the last few weeks there have been various features highlighting the initiatives and work of local officers in responding to the demands of the festive period, and in tackling concerns and priorities.
As we start the new year I thought it might be helpful to provide an update on the areas where we have made good progress, and those we will be focusing on in the coming weeks and months to make Stirling an even better place to live, work and visit.
The ‘Our Stirling’ campaign which ran over the festive period delivered some great results. The main aim of the campaign was to stop people becoming the victim of crime in the first place, but where it did occur, make sure those responsible were identified and arrested.
One of the crimes that officers focused on and which has a big impact at any time of year, but particularly at Christmas, is robbery. I’m pleased to say that we had no street or other robberies – nor were there any attempted robberies reported in Stirlingshire in December.
Similarly, and as I highlighted in one of my earlier articles, Police Scotland worked in partnership with the Thistles Centre to distribute purse bells to shoppers in an effort to deter ‘bag dips’. This is when purses or wallets are removed from shoppers without them even knowing their property has been stolen.
Again, over December, there were no reports of anyone either attempting to or succeeding in stealing a purse or wallet from a pocket or bag.
We will be working hard over the coming months to maintain these successes while also trying to reduce instances of shoplifting which, although it reduced significantly over the festive period, still remains an issue for local premises and businesses. .
Another issue which causes concern to both residents and businesses in the city centre is inconsiderate and illegal parking. In the last month, local officers conducted patrols with enforcement officers from Stirling Council and unfortunately found vehicles parked illegally all across the city – some on double yellow lines, others partially obstructing the pavement and several within disabled bays.
As a result more than 500 parking tickets were issued in December and the message going into 2017 is clear – if you park illegally you will receive a £30 fine and if your vehicle is causing an obstruction it will be removed and the cost to your pocket will be much greater.
Indeed much of the work we do throughout the year is done in partnership with Stirling Council and in recent weeks the new upgraded CCTV system in Stirling city centre has come into its own.
In the last week live updates from CCTV has led to the arrest of several persons across Stirling for crimes such as carrying an offensive weapon, assault, shoplifting and reset.
The coverage not only allows officers to attend promptly at the exact location of a crime but it often means that best evidence is available for any forthcoming trial.
Finally, one of the priorities the public asked local officers to tackle is anti-social behaviour. In 2016 instances of anti-social behaviour in Stirling decreased month-on-month and were below both the previous year’s level and average levels over the last five years.
In December anti-social behaviour was down between 30 and 50 per cent on previous years. I believe that this is due to the hard work of local officers, effective partnership working and communities taking time to report incidents that cause them concern.
As we move through 2017 I look forward to continuing to work together to build on the success we have already achieved.