PFCC announces £294k in Local Safer Streets funding for community safety projects across Essex

Locally planned projects to improve community safety across Essex are set to become reality thanks to £294k of Local Safer Streets funding from the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner for Essex.

Four projects in Wickford, Great Dunmow, Navestock and Chelmsford were proposed by district Community Safety Partnerships (CSPs). This latest allocation brings total PFCC Local Safer Streets funding to over £6.5 million since Safer Streets funding started in 2022. With this round of funding, the PFCC has successfully achieved its ambition to fund every district in Essex, a significant milestone for the Safer Streets programme and highlights an ongoing commitment to community safety across the county.

Roger Hirst, Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner for Essex, said: “Safe and secure communities are the bedrock on which we build success, prosperity and well-being for all.  

“I am delighted to allocate Local PFCC Safer Streets funding of £294,346 to improve CCTV, install safety measures and increase community safety patrols in key areas across Essex.

“In response to ongoing concerns raised by residents in Great Dunmow regarding the lack of youth provision, we are investing in youth-focused initiatives as part of our Safer Streets approach. This funding will help deliver positive, diversionary opportunities that support young people to feel engaged, safe, and connected to their community.”

“All of the bids submitted to the Local PFCC Safer Streets fund for this tranche have received funding. Most importantly they are crime-reducing measures proposed by people who live and work in these towns - local solutions identified by local people who care.

“Local PFCC Safer Streets funding is making a difference in Essex – anti-social behaviour incidents across the county are now more than two-thirds lower than they were in 2016.”

“In the 12 months to the end of July this year, all crime in Essex fell by 5.2% and these measures will help reduce crime further.”

“We aim for no person to feel unsafe in their community or in public, but we have a particular focus on the safety of women and girls. All these projects will continue to build community safety in our county.”

The four projects proposed by the CSPs, which will all successfully receive funding are:

• Wickford – a bid submitted by Basildon Community Safety Partnership sees funding of £160,531 to fund CCTV Upgrades and Expansion including new CCTV cameras with analytical intelligence installed in Wickford high street, car parks, and key pedestrian routes. Managed by Wickford Town Council, a Street Warden Service of two wardens will enforce Public Space Protection Orders, deter anti-social behaviour, and provide visible reassurance. The bid also includes Galvanised Fencing for Nevendon Park, Wickford, creating a physical barrier to prevent pony and traps entering the park via the car park.

• Great Dunmow - A bid submitted by Uttlesford Community Safety Partnership, sees £88,951 to fund CCTV installation of eight new cameras and upgrades in key town hotspots such as Tesco and the Co-Op on Mill Lane. The bid also includes funding for Two Part-Time Street Wardens, which will be a uniformed presence to deter ASB, gather intelligence, and reassure the public in Great Dunmow. Community Action Days and an outreach sports programme with Active Essex to improve well-being for young people are also included in this bid. There is also funding for two AI-capable ANPR cameras on poles at Stortford Road and Great Dunmow High Street which will enable real-time monitoring by Essex Police in both directions.

• Navestock – a bid from Brentwood and Epping Forest Community Safety Partnership will see funding of £19,864 to go to extra Joint Police and Council patrols, which will be weekly high-visibility and covert patrols, to target anti-social behaviour and community issues such as persistent fly-tipping. There will also be multi-agency training for enforcement teams to increase awareness of the enforcement powers available to patrolling officers, equipping them with the knowledge to investigate, enforce and prosecute fly-tipping offences. The bid will also include covert surveillance cameras in rural fly-tipping hotspots.

• Chelmsford – a bid from Chelmsford Community Safety Partnership will see £25,000 spent on community safety improvements in the Meadgate and Baddow Road area of Chelmsford, including new lighting in the Blue Lion Park to improve visibility and reduce ASB in a poorly lit area identified by residents as unsafe. There will also be new CCTV on Baddow Rec and Meadgate Avenue to deter and detect crime by enhancing surveillance coverage in key hotspots. Finally, as part of the bid there is an Artist Commission for The Meades Underpass, to brighten a neglected space and engage local youth and ex-offenders in a positive community project.