Cop shop on wheels to be a regular sight
Antisocial behaviour calls are almost halved
Police say that a mobile office introduced to the city centre in a bid to help tackle bad behaviour may be here to stay.
Operation Steadfast concluded at the end of last month with police hailing it as a success.
The aim was to reduce the disorder and antisocial behaviour being experienced in some areas – particularly Friars Street where a mobile police office was set up.
Traders say they have long experienced problems with violence, vandalism, shoplifting and drinking and urinating in the street.
And last month they expressed concerns that once the police operation was over that they would see many of the problems return.
Jonathan Holwell of the Friars Wynd Hotel was calling for a longterm strategy to be put in place to deal with the issue.
And David McDonald of the Burgh Coffeehouse this week said that the problems had simply been moved to other areas of the town for the duration of the operation.
However Stirling Area Commander, Chief Inspector Gill Boulton, said the initiative had made a difference in the city and they believe it will have a lasting impact.
She also confirmed that city centre officers are planning to maintain their mobile office in the town centre whenever they are on-duty, while policing plans will be put in place to ensure the most troublesome areas are robustly policed.
She added: “We will continue to work with our partners to identify and target the most prolific offenders and engage with business owners and residents to monitor behaviour and the impact of the initiative.”
Writing in her Stirling Observer column, Chief Inspector Boulton said: “This operation has now come to a close and the results have been incredibly positive.
“We have seen a significant drop in calls to the police in the area targeted by the operation. This has also resulted in a notable reduction in assaults, vandalism and theft by shoplifting, and at the same time a positive increase in police proactivity in the area – targeting people committing anti-social behaviour offences such as drinking and urinating in the street.
“This has only been achieved through hard work by officers on the ground, working with partner agencies in a joined-up way. The results have been excellent but we do not intend to stop there and more activity is already planned for the near future.”
Police previously said that in the first three weeks of the operation they had seen a 47 per cent decrease in the number of calls relating to antisocial behaviour in the city centre, compared to the same period last year.
What do you think about Operation Steadfast? Email news@ stirlingobserver.co.uk with your thoughts.