The meeting of Wandsworth Council's Safer Neighbourhood Board on December 10th 2024 was scheduled to include a discussion of the Board's work over the previous months, as well as updates on crime statistics and policing initiatives in the borough. The Board was also scheduled to receive reports on several topics related to community safety, including stop and search, custody, and ward panel activities.

Crime and Policing in Wandsworth

The Board was scheduled to receive a data pack from the Mayor's Office for Policing And Crime (MOPAC) providing an overview of crime and policing in Wandsworth.

This data pack was to include information on crime trends, stop and search, and public perceptions of the police. The previous meeting’s minutes show that the Board requested that future reports from the police should include comparisons to other boroughs.

The Board was also scheduled to be provided with an update on the use of Live Facial Recognition (LFR) technology in Wandsworth. This technology has been the subject of much debate, with concerns raised about its accuracy and its impact on privacy.

The Board was also scheduled to be provided with a presentation on the work of the Community Safety Team in tackling antisocial behaviour. This was to include case studies of successful projects and initiatives.

Community Safety Issues

The Board was also scheduled to consider a verbal report on possible changes to its Terms of Reference, specifically concerning the list of attendees at Board meetings.

The Board was scheduled to discuss the early release of prisoners under the SDS40 scheme. The SDS40 scheme allows prisoners to be released after serving only 40% of their sentence, as opposed to the usual 50%. The early release of prisoners has been a controversial topic, with concerns raised about the impact on public safety. The report was to include an update on the work of the Council's Task & Finish Group, which was set up to mitigate the impact of the SDS40 scheme.

Further to this, the Board was scheduled to be updated on the Safer Neighbourhood Project Funding for 2024, including which projects had been successful in receiving funding.

The Board was also scheduled to discuss a range of other issues, including updates on stop and search, custody, and ward panel activities.

Stop and Search

The Board was scheduled to receive an update on stop and search in Wandsworth from Andrew Healey, the Independent Stop and Search Co-Chair. However, no report was made available in advance of the meeting. The Board was to be informed that attempts to move the quarterly meetings of the Wandsworth stop and search community monitoring group to an online video format had been unsuccessful.

Custody

The Board was scheduled to be provided with a verbal update on the Independent Custody Visiting scheme in Wandsworth. It was to be informed that the size of the team had increased from four to nine members. Independent Custody Visitors (ICVs) are volunteers who visit police stations unannounced to check on the welfare of people being detained.

Ward Panel Comments and Updates

The Board was scheduled to be provided with a report summarising the activities of Safer Neighbourhood Panel meetings that had taken place across Wandsworth's Wards since the previous Board meeting. These reports cover a range of issues, including crime statistics, community safety initiatives, and concerns raised by residents. They provide valuable insights into the work being done at a local level to make Wandsworth a safer place to live, work, and visit.

The Board was scheduled to discuss the reports from the June and October 2024 meetings of the Safer Neighbourhood Panels. The June reports were not previously discussed as that meeting was cancelled.

The Board was scheduled to note that due to time constraints at the previous meeting in October 2024, the reports from the Ward Panels could not be discussed, and that the most recent reports would be circulated following this meeting.

Specifically, the Board was scheduled to note that the West Hill Ward Panel Chair report was not included in the original meeting pack, but was later appended to the minutes of that meeting.