Looking back on Weymouth’s 100 Days of Summer
An operation to tackle anti-social behaviour (ASB) and criminal activity in Weymouth saw another summer of low levels of incidents.
The 100 Days of Summer featured police officers and PCSOs working with members of Dorset Council’s Community Safety Accreditation Scheme (CSAS) and other partners to provide 100 days of highly visible uniformed foot patrol during the summer months.
As well as reducing the number of ASB incidents, there was a marked decrease in shoplifting and incidents of violence against a person. Although there were additional challenges that affected reported ASB, such as the Euro football tournament and protests on the seafront, officers worked hard with partners to keep ASB incidents close to the record lows of last year.
During 100 Days of Summer, officers sought to increase their visibility and connectivity with businesses in the town centre and along the seafront. At the end of summer, over 100 businesses were surveyed about topics such as anti-social behaviour and police presence in the area.
When asked if they had experienced an increase in engagement from the neighbourhood policing team, 68 per cent of businesses answered yes. 73 per cent of responders replied that they had seen an increased police presence in the town centre over the summer, with a further 10 per cent replying that there may have been an increase.
In total, 77 per cent of those surveyed reported that they felt there had been a reduction of ASB over the summer and 52 per cent feel that there is a definite or gradual improvement around ASB in the town centre.
Weymouth and Portland Neighbourhood Inspector Sam Goom said: “Weymouth is a great place to live, visit or work. We are committed to ensuring it stays that way. This year’s 100 Days of Summer has had a really good impact on the town, making it feel and look safer for everyone who lives in or visits Weymouth. By working with our partners we have maximised the impact of the initiative. My team have worked incredibly hard this summer tackling ASB and related crime – I am pleased with what they have achieved for our community.”
“The results from our survey with businesses show that patrols, increased visibility and partnership working have had a positive impact on retail crime too, and this is something that we will be continuing to work on throughout the year.”
Dawn Rondeau-Irvine, Chief Operations Officer for We Are Weymouth BID, said: “The 100 days of summer initiative was a great multi-agency approach to crime during the town's busiest season. The partnership working and communication was so successful that in Weymouth we are all continuing to meet and work together in this manner, improving the safety of the town for locals and visitors.
“It was great to see so many known shoplifters apprehended as well as antisocial behaviour driven out of the town something we believe made Weymouth an even better place to be this summer. Our Rangers will continue to work on intelligence with police and partners, something we believe is crucial for the betterment of the town.”
Cllr David Harris, Council Leader at Weymouth Town Council, said: “This year's 100 Days of Summer campaign has been a great success, with fantastic partnership between all the organisations involved including our Resort Team. The collaborative effort has really shone through, ensuring that the initiative ran smoothly and efficiently. There has been a noticeable improvement in reducing anti-social behaviour along the promenade, which has felt significantly lower compared to previous years. This demonstrates the positive impact of the campaign and the combined efforts of everyone involved in working together to create a safer and more enjoyable environment for all in Weymouth.”
Community Safety Team Leader Steve Yeoman for Dorset Council said: “Collaboration by Dorset Council, police and partners through the 100 Days of Summer has again shown what organisations can achieve when they pool their resources, expertise, and funds to tackle the root causes related to anti-social behaviour. This efficient service delivery reduces duplication, streamlines preventative actions, and helps develop sustainable strategies to create safer communities.”
One of the roles of the local neighbourhood team is to work towards community priorities. To set these priorities, officers look at police systems, use local knowledge and invite the public to complete a short survey. If you would like to feed into the local policing priorities for your area, you can do so by visiting https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/SMO24.
You can keep up to date on the team’s ongoing work by following Weymouth and Portland Police on Facebook and @WeyPortPolice on Instagram.
Image gallery:
select image to download
