Community Safety Days bring partners together in Babergh
Update: Due to the adverse weather, the 8 March community safety day has been postponed, with a new date to be confirmed.
Communities will see police, council officers and criminal exploitation experts on the streets of Great Cornard as two days of action take place in March.
On March 8, all these partner agencies will be in Great Cornard, speaking to residents and going door-to-door to hear their views on youth nuisance, anti-social behaviour, crime, how safe they are feeling in their community and what they would like to see more of.
Babergh District Council’s Community Safety Team will be joined by Suffolk Youth Justice Service’s Criminal Exploitation Hub and officers of Suffolk Constabulary to distribute surveys to those living in the town and hear their thoughts.
Then, on March 22, all three teams will be gathering in the Stevenson Centre for an open house event, 10am-7pm, in Great Cornard and will be available all day to answer questions and share more information about keeping their communities safe.
Cllr Mary McLaren Babergh cabinet member for Communities and Wellbeing, said:
Community safety is a unique concept to everyone it affects – for some it means streetlights staying on longer and seeing police in their neighbourhoods, for others it is a very acute and personal problem where they may be struggling with targeted anti-social behaviour, or know someone who is being exploited in their home.
The crucial part will be speaking to our residents and finding out what affects them. I hope everyone feels comfortable speaking to our team on the ground in March and we look forward to hearing from all of you.”
The Criminal Exploitation Hub is an initiative building on the success of the Suffolk Youth Justice Service’s Suffolk Against Gangs and Exploitation (SAGE) Team. The hub works with key partners, voluntary groups, communities, children, and families to support, disrupt, protect, and empower children and communities from the risk of criminal exploitation.
Jennifer Lebbon, Assistant Operations Manager at Suffolk Youth Justice Network, said:
"We want to help everyone develop a better understanding, more skills and greater expertise around criminal exploitation.
"The most effective way to address criminal exploitation is clear communication with our communities. We want to build stronger links and this is an ideal opportunity to do so.”
A spokesperson for Suffolk Constabulary added:
"Criminal exploitation is a crime which intersects heavily with modern slavery and human trafficking. It can start with smaller actions like controlling or coercive behaviour, and we want to prevent these instances from becoming more dangerous for our communities, either those directly exposed to the exploitation or living in areas these criminals operate.
"We want to hear from anyone who may have concerns, and to share what signs to look out for which might signal that someone is being exploited. The best thing anyone can do is talk to us. We want to reassure victims that our aim is not to criminalise them, but to protect them and help give them their independence back.
"If you are concerned someone is being exploited, please contact the Unseen and Modern Slavery Helpline on 0800 0121 700. To stay 100% anonymous contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555111. In an emergency call 999.”