New CCTV cameras and the expansion of a free home security scheme have been given the go-ahead as part of a project to make Mansfield safer.
Nottinghamshire Police and Crime Commissioner Caroline Henry, working in partnership with Nottinghamshire Police, Mansfield District Council and Nottinghamshire County Council, has been granted an additional £50k from the Home Office to extend the original Safer Streets 2 project in the town to help cut street crime.
It comes after police figures for resident burglary offences in Mansfield in the six months to October 2021 showed an annual reduction of 47.5 per cent – the lowest ever number for the same period.
The new funding, which comes on top of the £432k already secured for the scheme last summer, will deliver two new fixed CCTV cameras in the town centre – one on Welbeck Street and another on Newcastle Street. These areas have previously been highlighted as having a higher-risk of crime and the presence of the cameras will help provide police with evidence to detect offenders.
The bulk of the grant (£35k) will be used to expand a free home security offer to residents living in one of the Lower Super Output Areas (LSOAs) of the town – these are areas that have also been identified as having a disproportionately higher risk of crime and therefore qualify for the Home Office’s scheme.
The scheme is already funding new CCTV cameras in Wood Street/Rosemary Street (two cameras), Chesterfield Road South (one camera), Queen Street (one camera), Dame Flogan Street and Midworth Street (two cameras). Preparations for installation are already underway.
Meanwhile, 120 householders have been offered a free security upgrade so far. This may have included the installation of five level door locks, window alarms, sensor lighting, toughened windows/doors, secure side gates and sensor-activated EIFI or 4G CCTV.
The extra money will enable a further 46 properties to receive security packages before March 31.
Commenting on the extra funding, Commissioner Henry said: “I am delighted the Home Office has granted us this extra funding to expand the Safer Streets scheme in Mansfield and make the town even safer.
“Burglary rates are already down by almost half which is a fantastic improvement and means fewer residents have suffered the distress of becoming a victim of crime. People also feel much safer and are less worried about being targeted.
“The swift and successful roll out of this initiative has been vital to securing this extra funding and I would like to thank Mansfield’s local Burglary Reduction Officer, Police Community Support Officer (PCSO) Megan Tuffley, from Nottinghamshire Police, in particular for her hard work and dedication in carrying out home risk assessments and engaging with residents.
“The risk of criminals being caught in the act in Mansfield is now much higher and we remain committed to doing everything possible to keep it that way.”
Councillor Marion Bradshaw, Portfolio Holder for Safer Communities, Housing and Wellbeing at Mansfield District Council, said: “This is more good news for residents in Mansfield as investment is available to make the town a safer place to live, work and visit. Extra funding to help people live a better quality of life is much welcomed in the district and people can be reassured by extended CCTV coverage and burglary reduction initiatives”.
Cllr Ben Bradley MP, Leader of Nottinghamshire County Council, added: “It’s fantastic to see that the Police and Crime Commissioner is both securing funding for our area and prioritising Mansfield, because I know that crime is high on the agenda for a lot of local people. This additional investment is reassuring, and I know from my conversations with local Police Officers that they believe the extra technology and infrastructure it funds can make a real difference to local people.”
Inspector Nick Butler, district commander for Nottinghamshire Police, said: “Safer Streets funding is all about designing out crime, or – to put it another way – making life as difficult as possible for the people who routinely commit offences in our community. It is already having a very significant impact in the town and I delighted to learn that even more money will be made available to us.
“I am particularly pleased with the work we have done with former burglary victims and their neighbours to preemptively improve their home security and we look forward to speaking to even more people in the weeks and months ahead.”
The Safer Streets project is due to be completed by March 31 and is also funding:
- Free vehicle security upgrades
- Additional Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) technology in the town to detect crime and extra monitoring hours to keep residents safe
- Improved street lighting
- Extra high-visibility police patrols around the top ten hotpots for burglary, vehicle crime and robbery and a dedicated Safer Streets team consisting of police officers, Special Constables and Wardens.
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