Canal Coppers
Residents may have
noticed the increased police patrols in the last few weeks around Camden Town.
As I wondered up the High Street I almost choked on my coffee as I noticed two flourescent jackets moving their way along the canalside. That same day I saw two officers come into the alleyway behind my house to check all was well. To be honest, its great to have them here.
Some people say that Community Support Officers don't have enough powers to make a real difference.
I reckon the opposite. Apart from the deterrent effect of 18 people in police uniforms providing a continuous patrol for our area, they provide peace of mind for residents.
They're individuals who care. They'd be unlikely to simply ignore your pleas for help if you got in trouble on the streets late at night. They're willingly helpful fellow citizens, who just happen to have startlingly bright jackets and radios on them.
This new emphasis on police on our streets from Camden Council and the Met, along with the security guards funded by Camden Town Unlimited, have had a noticeable effect on the general feel of our area.
The statistics back this up: the number of recorded criminal offences between April and August this year dropped by 17.4 percent compared with the same period in 2006. And the number of drug incidents captured by CCTV fell by almost a third during the same time period.
One thing it would be nice to see is police patrols on Harmood Street and at the corner of Malden and Prince of Wales Roads after 10 pm. With the amount of car breakings that happen in that area, sometimes in broad daylight(!), any increased police presence would be a help.
noticed the increased police patrols in the last few weeks around Camden Town.As I wondered up the High Street I almost choked on my coffee as I noticed two flourescent jackets moving their way along the canalside. That same day I saw two officers come into the alleyway behind my house to check all was well. To be honest, its great to have them here.
Some people say that Community Support Officers don't have enough powers to make a real difference.
I reckon the opposite. Apart from the deterrent effect of 18 people in police uniforms providing a continuous patrol for our area, they provide peace of mind for residents.
They're individuals who care. They'd be unlikely to simply ignore your pleas for help if you got in trouble on the streets late at night. They're willingly helpful fellow citizens, who just happen to have startlingly bright jackets and radios on them.
This new emphasis on police on our streets from Camden Council and the Met, along with the security guards funded by Camden Town Unlimited, have had a noticeable effect on the general feel of our area.
The statistics back this up: the number of recorded criminal offences between April and August this year dropped by 17.4 percent compared with the same period in 2006. And the number of drug incidents captured by CCTV fell by almost a third during the same time period.
One thing it would be nice to see is police patrols on Harmood Street and at the corner of Malden and Prince of Wales Roads after 10 pm. With the amount of car breakings that happen in that area, sometimes in broad daylight(!), any increased police presence would be a help.
