ITEM NO.

  1. PURPOSE OF THE REPORT

To provide information on the proposed management arrangements for the extension to the Wrexham Neighbourhood Warden Scheme.

  1. INFORMATION
  2. Community Safety, and reducing crime and the fear of crime is one of the top eight corporate priorities for the Council. In February this year, the Council demonstrated their commitment to improving local community safety by approving the expansion of the Neighbourhood Warden Scheme. Future additional investment in the Neighbourhood Warden Scheme was agreed at £200K per annum for the next three years.
  3. This increased investment will finance the employment of an additional 10 Neighbourhood Wardens each year, so that many more communities throughout the County Borough will have the benefit of their own Warden.

2.2 Key Elements of the extended Neighbourhood Warden Scheme

Members will be aware that the main focus of the Pilot Neighbourhood Warden Scheme (operational in Chirk and Caia Park) is to reduce the level of anti-social behaviour and juvenile nuisance and to reduce the fear of crime and improve the quality of local people’s lives. While this still holds true for the extended scheme it will be important to have a flexible approach, to respond to the specific needs of individual communities at various points over time.

In essence, the roles and responsibilities and the location of Neighbourhood Wardens to communities will broadly fit across 3 main approaches:

  • Reactive, focused response to increasing seriousness of anti-social behaviour and juvenile nuisance – visible uniformed patrolling of hotspot areas at key times and locations, reporting incidents, use of accredited powers as appropriate
  • Preventative and developmental work in communities to consult with and engage local people in community safety initiatives and diversionary activities for young people and make community safety referrals to service providers to enhance communication and inform resource targeting.
  • Reassurance work, which will likely include aspects of the previous two, visible patrolling and encouraging community participation in community safety initiatives. But will also include a greater capacity to extend developmental work into broader quality of life issues e.g. Good Neighbour Schemes, local point of contact with the authority, provision of advice and information.

2.3Importance of Integrated Services

Dependant upon the location and the expressed local need, the roles and responsibilities of Neighbourhood Wardens will need to be adaptable to the local context. However, whichever approach or combination of approaches is most appropriate, one factor will remain constant, that of ensuring and promoting effective communication/ integration with community leaders and relevant services. It will be important to ensure links and integrated working with the breadth of Council services e.g. Amenity Wardens, Youth Offending Service, Trading Standards etc and involvement of local Members. The Neighbourhood Warden Scheme also need to involve communication and joint working with external agencies/organisations, this will clearly include member organisations of the Community Safety Partnership e.g. Police; Health; Probation; Fire Service etc as well as community based and voluntary organisations.

2.4The Pilot Neighbourhood Warden Scheme has been useful in initiating this work. In particular the Senior Neighbourhood Warden, has promoted the linkages with services both at a strategic level and supported individual Wardens in making the local connections. However, within the extended scheme this needs to be further developed and maintained if the full potential of the Warden Scheme is to be achieved. To maximise the strategic and local opportunities and ensure effective management of the Neighbourhood Warden Scheme, will require a strong infrastructure.

2.5Recruitment Update

As reported previously, the Home Office strongly recommends the appointment of a co-ordinator to focus on Anti-Social Behaviour in each Local Authority/ Community Safety Partnership area. They have supported this action by allocating £25,000 per year for 2004-05 and 2005-06 by way of contribution to this appointment. In Wrexham, the post of Community Safety Co-ordinator – Anti-Social Behaviour, will include responsibilities for the management of the Neighbourhood Warden Scheme. Recruitment for this post has recently been completed and the successful candidate will take up the post by the beginning of December 2004. The post will be located within the multi-agency Community Safety Unit.

The recruitment process for the 10 additional Neighbourhood Wardens (plus 1 vacancy from the Pilot) is well underway with interviews scheduled for mid November. To take account of the extended vetting process (Criminal Record etc), it is anticipated that the successful candidates will commence their 4 week Accreditation training in January 2005. This will mean that the timescale for actual operation in the identified communities will be February.

Planning for the second phase (2005-06) recruitment has already started to ensure successful candidates will be in post for April 2005. However, the Pilot has identified the need to ensure effective management support and strengthen local ownership and accountability. It is proposed that the second phase recruitment for Neighbourhood Wardens, will also include a further 2 Senior Warden posts plus 1 Administrative Assistant. The proposed management structure is attached at Appendix 1.

This model will also complement the Police local management arrangement, which is based on three territorial Inspectors each managing a team of Community Beat Managers (in North, Central, South Wrexham). Joint working opportunities between the local Neighbourhood Warden and the Community Beat Manager for an area will be promoted and are in line with the Home Office model for the extended policing family. This more local focus will also allow for the establishment of more effective local Anti- Social Behaviour Panels in the North, Central and South of the County Boroughs.

2.6Criteria for the location/phasing in of Neighbourhood Wardens to communities

The Pilot Scheme has raised awareness of the benefits of Neighbourhood Wardens in local communities. In the coming weeks, decisions will need to be made about the allocation of the next ten posts across local communities.

The following seven factors are proposed as the criteria on which to base this allocation. This does not mean that only communities which meet all seven criteria can be selected.

  • Evidence of increasing levels and significance of anti-social behaviour
  • Communities First Area
  • Community Safety Partnership and/or Joint Action Group recommendation
  • Local Member agreement
  • Evidence of existing and/or potential for community activity
  • Opportunity for joint working
  • Potential to establish local base for Neighbourhood Warden in community

It is proposed that allocation decisions will be taken by the Executive Board following the advice of the Community Safety Partnership.

3.RECOMMENDATION

That Members consider the proposals and recommend approval.

REASONS FOR RECOMMENDATION

To ensure the effective expansion of the Neighbourhood Warden Scheme across the County Borough.

WEBSITE INFORMATION

None

Report Ref. AMR/05/04.