Agenda and minutes

Extraordinary, Cleaner, Greener and Safer Overview and Scrutiny Committee - Monday, 27th February, 2023 7.00 pm

Venue: Committee Room 2, Civic Offices, New Road, Grays, Essex, RM17 6SL. View directions

Contact: Rhiannon Whiteley, Senior Democratic Services Officer  Email: Direct.Democracy@thurrock.gov.uk

Note: Extraordinary 

Media

Items
No. Item

16.

Declaration of Interests

Additional documents:

Minutes:

No interests were declared.

17.

Council Funded Police Officers Options Paper pdf icon PDF 451 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Chair clarified that the report is no longer an exempt report and on pink paper and therefore will be debated in public.

 

The Assistant Director for Investigation, Enforcement and Community Safety introduced the report. He explained that the report concerns the contract in place with regard to the Council funding of 4 Essex Police Officers, currently deployed as part of the Town Centre Teams (TCT) within Community Policing in Tilbury and Purfleet. The report outlines 5 options for the Committee to consider.

 

                       I.          The Contract is terminated complying with the contractual stipulations within the contract.

 

                      II.         The 4 additional officers are able to be deployed to other areas covered by Town Centre Teams, namely Grays, Ockendon and Stanford le Hope/ Corringham according to intelligence and operational demand.

 

                    III.         2 funded officers remain in Tilbury with the 2 Purfleet Officers being able to be deployed to other areas covered by Town Centre Teams, namely Grays, Ockendon and Stanford le Hope/ Corringham according to intelligence and operational demand.

 

                   IV.          2 funded officers remain dedicated to Purfleet and Tilbury (1 in each area) and 2 officers are able to be deployed to other areas covered by Town Centre Teams, namely Grays, Ockendon and Stanford le Hope/ according to intelligence and operational demand.

 

                     V.         No change to current arrangements

 

The Assistant Director for Investigation, Enforcement and Community Safety highlighted that options 2,3 and 4 are the ideal options they are looking at so they can move officers around linked to intelligence and to meet operational demand.

 

Councillor Byrne queried why Stanford-Le-Hope and Corringham are being treated as the same place.

 

The Assistant Director for Investigation, Enforcement and Community Safety clarified that those two areas are controlled by the same town centre team.

 

Councillor Byrne added that Stanford-Le-Hope has the third biggest shopping centre and expressed concern that those two towns were being treated differently to other towns.

 

Councillor Muldowney commented that she was confused as to why the options are different from the exempt report previously presented to the Committee.

 

The Assistant Director for Investigation, Enforcement and Community Safety responded that since the last meeting there has been ongoing dialogue with the police and the report has been updated.

 

Councillor Muldowney highlighted that she would have voted for the previous option 2 which is now not an option in the current report.

 

The Assistant Director for Investigation, Enforcement and Community Safety clarified that this is the only option that has changed significantly from the previous report and this is because the police would like the flexibility to move officers around the town centre teams and that is what options 2, 3 and 4 deliver.

 

Councillor Muldowney reiterated that she would like to vote for the previous option 2.

 

Councillor Pearce noted that Aveley share officers with Ockendon and she queried if Aveley might get their own dedicated police officers in the future.

 

The Assistant Director for Investigation, Enforcement and Community Safety clarified that he could not answer for the police  ...  view the full minutes text for item 17.