26.01.23 – Police Public Meeting, Warm Spaces in Newcastle-under-Lyme

Local policing, officer numbers and improvements in Police contact are among the topics Staffordshire Commissioner for Police, Fire & Rescue and Crime Ben Adams will discuss with Chief Constable Chris Noble at a public meeting taking place today.

During the Police Public Performance Meeting, which will be broadcast live online from 10am, the Commissioner will ask the Chief Constable about the progress the force is making to deliver the priorities detailed in his Police & Crime Plan.

Staffordshire Commissioner Ben Adams said: “Under the force’s new local policing model, introduced last June, we are already seeing more officers based in our communities to deal with the issues that matter to people, and improvements made in Police contact.  There is more work to be done, and I will continue to closely monitor the force’s performance on behalf of the communities of Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent to ensure this momentum is maintained.

Topics discussed will include:    

• An update on Staffordshire Police’s local policing model, which sees officers spending more time in communities, working with partner organisations to problem-solve local issues
• Improvements in average answering times for 999 calls, which continue to decrease week-on-week. The most recent data puts Staffordshire Police fifteenth nationally out of 43 forces, an improvement of 12 places since August 2022
• A 12% increase in the number of Police officers – currently 1,869 compared to 1,673 in 2019/20
• Staffordshire Police’s financial position, including the force’s response to the additional pressures caused by inflation and increased fuel costs, and what this means for its reserves

The Police Public Performance Meeting was streamed online at 10am today, and will also be available to view afterwards.

Find out more and watch the meeting here: Police Public Performance Meeting – Staffordshire Commissioner (staffordshire-pfcc.gov.uk).

Ben Adams                                       Chris Nobel

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Residents and families who are struggling to heat their homes this winter due to soaring energy bills have new and improved access to warm spaces across Newcastle-under-Lyme thanks to a council partnership.

A network of community venues providing heated, safe and welcoming places to gather for free during the colder months – where visitors can often enjoy hot food and drink as well as some company – is being enhanced and extended following funding from Staffordshire County Council and additional financial support from Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council.

The Borough Council is administering new grants of up to £500 to a range of voluntary, community and charity organisations who have successfully applied to either open up new warm spaces, or extend the opening hours of existing venues,

New locations include Chesterton Community Centre, Halmer End Methodist Church and Kidsgrove Rotary Food Hub.

A full directory of all warm spaces in the borough is available on the Council’s website. The enhanced service provision – available seven days a week – will be in place by the end of January at the latest until the end of March 2023.