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NEWS:
NEW LONDON NORTH TEAM FOR LUTON AND
BEDFORD NOTICE:
HR TO SWITCH
TO BUSINESS CENTRE A
new team of officers has started patrolling the railways in and around
Working
in close partnership with FCC staff, the new team has a duty to reduce
instances of crime and antisocial behaviour and act as a reassuring
presence to rail passengers travelling from The
team of 11 officers,
unveiled at Luton station on 30 June alongside the Mayor of Luton,
Councillor Mohammed
Riaz,
will
cover stations from London Kings Cross up to Cllr
Riaz said: “I commend both BTP and FCC for ensuring that our train
stations will be well patrolled, which will deter crime from those few
people who want to behave in an antisocial way.
“It
is fantastic to see yet another example of agencies coming together and
working hard to tackle anti-social behaviour in Inspector
Damien Walsh, who will oversee the team, says passengers travelling on the
stretch of line can expect to see a more visible and reassuring police
presence. Insp
Walsh said: "These officers will play an important role in reassuring
passengers that the railways are a safe way to travel.
“Particularly
as far as antisocial behaviour, drugs and offensive weapons are concerned,
the message is simple. BTP will not tolerate such activity on the railway
and the team will be enforcing that message
robustly.” Insp
Walsh added: “The team will work closely with FCC rail staff, local
business, the local police force and council to ensure that intelligence
is shared and that any persistent problems are identified and dealt with
swiftly and effectively.” HR
to switch to Business Centre As
staff will be aware, the model of how HR is done at BTP is changing.
Specifically, a Business Centre has been set up in The
Business Centre has already taken over the HR work of the non-London BTP
Areas. The
date set for London North’s HR support to switch to the Birmingham
Business Centre is Monday 24 August
2009. From
this date forwards all of London North’s day-to-day HR activity, advice
and guidance will be handled by the Business Centre.
Adrian
Tills will remain as HR Business Partner at Area HQ, where he will be
working to support the Area’s Senior Management Team on a variety of
projects. Watch
this space for further updates. Last
week the Chief Constable Sir Ian Johnston took part in the annual Three
Peaks Challenge alongside the Area Commander, Chief Superintendent Mark
Newton, London North HR Business Partner, Adrian Tills, and PS Paolo
Boggi, Officer-in-Charge at The
Three Peaks Challenge involves climbing the three highest peaks in
The
gruelling three day event is supported by the railway industry, including
many of our TOC partners and Network rail, and raises money for the
Railways Children charity, whose primary aim is to change the lives of
children living on the streets across the world.
Chief
Supt Newton said: “This was a very challenging event and I am pleased to
say that we reached the summits of the three peaks in good time. We even
got to the summit of “The
Railways Children is a good cause and I am pleased that BTP was able to
make a valuable contribution to it,” he
added. Teams
that take part in the event are required to make a donation to the
organisation as a condition of entry. This year the event is thought to
have raised in excess of £200,000. Attacks
on ticket vending machines was a family
affair Four
members of the same family have been charged with 54 counts of ticket
machine vandalism and theft at stations throughout Bedfordshire,
Hertfordshire and Cambridgeshire. . The
Loveridge family, part of the travelling community based in the
Bedfordshire area, attacked the ticket vending machines between July 2008
and March 2009. Mark,
Albey, Murphy and Jane Loveridge are thought to have stolen more than
£17,000 and caused almost £190,000 worth of damage to railway property.
First
Capital Connect, National Express and London Midland were all affected and
suffered an estimated loss of revenue of more than £250,000.
Detective
Sergeant Stephen Cullinane said: “This is an excellent result, which has
led to the apprehension of a family who were causing considerable property
and financial damage to the railways. “Although
predominantly an Op Globe investigation, we were given a large amount of
support in this enquiry - the Area’s AIB and SOCO teams, uniformed
officers who assisted during Section 18 searches and night time
observations, and the FCC CCTV team, all helped us in catching these
offenders.” “I
would like to give a special mention to Christian Prescott in the AIB for
his help with mobile telephone cell site data analysis,” added DS
Cullinane. Man
with shotgun cartridge and screwdrivers cautioned
A
19-year-old man was given a caution for possession of pointed articles at
King Cross station after he was found to be in possession of a number of
screwdrivers. Dusan
Gaspar, 19, of East Ham, failed to give a satisfactory explanation as to
why he was carrying the tools and was cautioned for the offence.
On
the evening of 22 June, Gaspar walked past PCSO Abdul Kamruzzaman and as
he did so, dropped what looked like a shotgun cartridge. PCSO Kamruzzaman,
joined by PCSO Imoh, immediately caught up with Gaspar and detained the
male for a search to take place. The
object that Gaspar had dropped turned out to be an empty shotgun cartridge
and he was also carrying four screwdrivers. A/PS
Thomas Bradbury, arresting officer, decided that Gaspar’s excuse of
carrying the items in order to repair his bike at Superintendent
Paul Brogden and Inspector Damien Walsh, Officer-in-Charge at Kings Cross
have said that although Gaspar had not committed a serious offence, the
initial actions of PCSOs Kamruzzaman and Imoh was an excellent example of
front-line policing. Insp
Walsh said: “PCSOs Kamruzzaman and Imoh acted in a decisive and
professional manner and prevented what, in their eyes, could have been a
potentially dangerous situation. “Their
actions led to a positive disposal for a criminal offence and shows that
neighbourhood policing teams are at the heart of BTP’s anti-crime and
counter-terrorism strategy.” Superintendent
Paul Brogden added: “I would also like to thank PCSOs Kamruzzaman
and Imoh
for their superb observational skills and handling of this situation.
“This
is exactly the type of pro-active policing that we want to see at our
mainline hub stations as they continue to be vulnerable to criminal and
potential terrorist activity.” St
Pancras International reaches out to the local community
Over
the past few weeks the team at St Pancras International has organised a
number of events that have made a positive impact on their relations with
the local communities that they serve. In
the first example, a Eurostar employee spent a day shadowing officers and
PCSOs to gain an insight into the work of the BTP in preparation for her
application to the Force. Sergeant
Jonathan Baker, who helped organise the event, said the person from
Eurostar was very impressed with the level of professionalism, dedication
and competency that was displayed by the officers she shadowed.
Sgt
Baker was also involved in organising a special morning to show a
12-year-old boy around St Pancras. The boy, from Sgt
Baker took him around the station and also arranged for Hamleys toy-store
to donate some items to help him remember the
day. And
on Wednesday 1 July, Inspector Julian Dixon organised Operation Hallmark,
where two primary schools, one from Insp
Dixon said: “The community-focused events the team organised were very
enjoyable and I have received positive feedback from those that were
involved. “I
would like to say a big thank you to all the BTP staff that helped
organise these fantastic events. In particular I would like to commend Sgt
Baker who spent a lot of time and effort organising the
activities.” Major
public order exercise on 15 July – volunteers
required The
Force is holding a major public order exercise at Lydd Army Camp, Kent, in
July and volunteers from police staff are needed to make it as realistic
as possible. Superintendent
Andy Ball said: “The exercise will involve public order teams from across
the Force and officers from City of “Volunteers
need to get permission from their line manager first and respond to PC Lee
Bolland. We’ve arranged transport from FHQ on the morning of Wednesday 15
July and return transport in the evening. Meals and drinks will be
provided on site.” It
should be noted that police horses and dog units will be involved in the
day and the exercises could involve physical activity so appropriate
clothing and footwear is essential. To email PC Bolland, click here.
Numbers are limited. On
behalf of the Area Commander, we are pleased to announce the following
officers have recently been promoted to sergeant
posts:
Chief
Superintendent Mark Newton said: “Congratulations to those that have been
promoted. I wish you all the future success in your new
roles.”
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