NEWS:     LONDON NORTH OFFICERS AND STAFF RECOGNISED FOR THEIR COMMENDABLE SERVICE

NEWS:     BTP AT THE STRAWBERRY FAIR

London North officers and staff recognised for their commendable service

On Thursday 4 June the Area hosted a Commendations Awards Ceremony to reward staff and officers who have shown courage, dedication and skill in their work.

Area Commander Mark Newton was on hand to present the commendations and Lew Adams, of the BTPA, and Peter Standring from LOROL, were invited as special guests.

Award winners invited friends and families to attend and the Apothecaries Hall, Blackfriars, was full to capacity.

Chief Supt Newton said: “The day was a great success and I was pleased to see so many people come along and support our officers and staff.

“I am always proud of the great work my team carries out and these awards are my way of thanking them for their graft and dedication.”

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BTP at the Strawberry Fair  

London North officers made more than 70 arrests during a very successful operation at this year’s Cambridge Strawberry Fair on 6 June.

The Strawberry Fair is a free community event with music, entertainment, art shows and craft fairs. However, in recent times, the event has been blighted by antisocial behaviour – with the local council threatening to cancel it.

Led by Chief Inspector Jim Nattrass, BTP deployed 100 officers and the LN custody bus as part of a joint operation with Cambridge officers from 8am to 2:30am.

Chief Insp Nattrass said that the day was a great success with 75 arrests being made for offences such as possession of offensive weapons, drugs offences and public order offences.

Officers were deployed around the Area including Peterborough, Cambridge, Ely, Kings Lynn and Kings Cross to marshal people travelling to the carnival on the railway.

Officers executed a number of tactics to restrict troublemakers entering the event, which included: knife arches, drugs dogs and plain clothes police officers spotting passengers who were turning back because of the visible police presence.

Chief Insp Nattrass said: “Local police and Cambridge City Council were grateful for the support that BTP provided in policing the Strawberry Fair. Although there were examples of antisocial behaviour – we dealt with these in a restrained yet effective manner.

“Importantly, those travelling to the fair by the railways did so in a safe and secure environment.”

Area Commander Mark Newton said: “I would like to thank all of the officers, PCSOs and staff involved in the policing and planning of Strawberry Fair last weekend.

“I was a gold commander at the event and the professionalism and energy shown by all those that assisted at the event was first class.”

The Area Commander also wishes to thank all those involved in dealing with the recent tube strike and the England international at Wembley.

He said: “Large crowds were well managed with LN officers working long hours, once again, to ensure the public travelled in a safe and secure environment. Thank you for your efforts.”

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Behaviour while on duty

Incivility is one of the most common forms of complaint received by the Force and can have a number of serious implications for individual police officers and BTP in general.

Being rude or hostile to the public will affect BTP’s confidence and satisfaction levels and could also result in complaints being raised against individual police officers.

In an effort to improve our service to the public and reduce the opportunities for complaints all officers should familiarise themselves with the acceptable standards of behaviour in order to improve general conduct while on duty.

• Staff should maintain and deliver a high personal standard of customer service to all members of the public – at all times
• Remember the Customer Service Principles and put them to use when dealing with members of the public
• Take the time to carefully listen to the public and take their concerns seriously
• Inspire confidence and help people feel secure
• Support someone who has reported an incident with information including a reference number and contact details
• Take ownership of the case and deliver BTP’s promises
• Explain what we can and what we cannot do
• Notify people regularly of the case’s progress and the final outcome

Detective Chief Inspector Hugh Borgeat said: “At the BTP we pride ourselves on delivering an excellent policing service and this undoubtedly includes a caring and responsive attitude when dealing with the public.

“You should always remember – a first impression is a lasting impression.”

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E-learning – victim and witness care

All officers are expected to take part in the e-learning package for victim and witness care.

All officers are expected to complete the training as soon as possible as this will ensure London North is implementing current legislation. 

Supt Paul Brogden said: “It is very important that all officers complete this training. Presently, only 17 per cent of officers on Area have completed it and this is being monitored at FHQ.”

The package can be found on the intranet page here.

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Teenager weeps in court after being convicted of having a gun in her bedroom

A teenager who had a gun hidden in her bedroom has been jailed for three years following an investigation by LN CID.

Jade Fox, 17, was recently found guilty of possessing a firearm at a trial at Southend Crown Court.

The Area’s Robbery Squad, based at Stratford, searched her home in November 2008 in connection with a robbery at Thorpe Bay Station. They found the weapon in the pocket of a hoodie, which was in a locked silver box.

Fox had denied all knowledge of the 9mm semi-automatic pistol and claimed it had been planted there. But Recorder Alan Saggerson said the evidence that she had been storing the gun for her boyfriend or one of his friends had been “overwhelming”.

Saggerson lifted reporting restrictions, which had prohibited the local Echo newspaper from naming Fox, as a deterrent to others.

Detective Constable Gary Wildman said: “We are really pleased with the sentence, and the fact that the judge lifted her anonymity in this case.

“The sentence sends out a clear message to people who hold on to weapons for others. Such behaviour can be viewed by the courts in the same light as the people who actually carry out firearms offences themselves.”

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New Driving Regulations for Basic Drivers

Basic driving permit holders were reassessed by a driving standards officer from May 2008 to May 2009.

All department heads and OICs were made aware of this requirement and if you have not been assessed then you will no longer be authorised to drive a BTP vehicle.

If this applies to you, please do not drive a police vehicle as there is a risk you will not be covered by BTP’s insurance policy and could be subject to discipline.

Anyone who still requires an assessment should contact T/Insp Mark Hook at AHQ on 48229 or by email.

Please note that this only applies to Basic drivers – V and A drivers are not affected.

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Streamline Process – Criminal Justice Update

The Streamline Process (SP), a key element of the CJSSS programme, is due to be implemented nationally by every police force on 1 July 2009.

The main aims of SP is to expedite cases through the criminal justice process and enable a more proportionate file build – based on a summary of the key facts outlined in the new MG5 police report. 

However, to ensure that other criminal justice requirements are met – e.g. No Witness No Justice – certain documents must be completed and included on all files.

It is imperative that officers include an MG9, with details of all witnesses, and a Victim Personal Statement (where applicable) on the MG11. This is especially important in anticipated guilty plea cases, so the court has knowledge of the impact on the victim when passing sentence.

SP, along with the other CJSSS elements such as telephone statements, will dramatically reduce the paperwork burden on officers in straightforward cases. But for the process to operate effectively, good quality investigations are essential, which officers need to describe accurately in a well-judged and balanced case summary.

DI Dave Aiton said: “All sergeants should have received an SP briefing sheet circulated by FHQ.

“In addition, the Force will dispatch an SP power-point presentation and copies of a pocket sized booklet, entitled ‘The Streamlined Process – A Guide for Practitioners’ to complement the process.”

“Together, with publicity on the Intranet, this should help provide a greater understanding of the process,” added DI Aiton.

If officers require further guidance on any element of SP – you can contact the London CJU sergeant, PS Gary Rose.

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Southend PC cops an eyeful

Shocked onlookers at Grays Station had to turn the other cheek on June 1 after a 33-year-old trespasser exposed himself after being confronted by Southend PC Matt Bass.

While carrying out a routine patrol of Grays Station PC Bass observed Mark Lee, of Grays, trespassing on the pedestrian level crossing, before running in front of a moving London to Pitsea c2c train.

The train was forced to activate its emergency brakes and sound its horn. Fortunately the train was moving at a slow speed, having just departed from the station, and the male managed to get across without causing injury to himself.

PC Bass exited the station to apprehend Lee, who decided to run off and head towards Grays town centre. As PC Bass gave chase, Lee pulled down his trousers and exposed his buttocks to the officer, to the shock of numerous passengers waiting in the taxi queue.

PC Bass arrested Lee and during the interview he admitted to trespassing on the railway, a public order offence and obstructing the railway. Lee blamed his actions on the fact that he had recently broke up with his girlfriend moments before he approached the level crossing and was unwilling to wait for the train to pass through.

PC Matt Bass said: “Lee was clearly upset about the break-up with his girlfriend, but exposing himself in this way was quite bizarre. It’s certainly one of the most unusual responses I’ve had from someone I’ve sought to arrest, that’s for sure.”

Lee was given a caution as he admitted all offences and had never been in trouble with police before.

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Escorting prisoners to police custody

Officers are reminded that if they are taking prisoners to Home Office police custody facilities they must obtain an A.S and URN number from the BTP CRC. This will then be passed to the custody sergeant.

If this is not done the record will not be shown as a BTP arrest, which can cause problems further down the line – e.g. it will affect the Area’s accounting for prisoner numbers.

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Ordering BTP merchandise and giveaways for NPT teams

BTP-branded merchandise and promotional giveaways should be ordered by NPTs directly from approved suppliers via the order forms on the Intranet.  These items are not kept in stock by the Media and Marketing Department and therefore it is imperative that they are ordered by NPTs well in advance of an engagement event.

The merchandise that can be ordered includes BTP memory sticks, sticky notes, pens, pencils, personal alarms, drink bottles and jelly beans. These items can be used for community engagement events, days of action, school visits, campaigns and awareness days, for example.

To order the materials:

1.      Select the products you want to order from the lists on the Intranet

2.      Make sure you have secured funding from your department head / line manager

3.      Submit a white form to Finance, who will generate a purchase order number

4.      Download the appropriate order form(s) and complete, ensuring these include the purchase order number

5.      Send the order to the supplier using the details listed on the bottom of each form.

Please allow an appropriate length of time for delivery as this can sometimes take up to six weeks.

Please click here for the link or see the Media and Marketing pages on the Intranet for the merchandise lists and order forms.

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