Josh Newbury

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Ms Butler. Antisocial behaviour is a recurring concern for residents in my constituency. I raised this issue in June last year and since then, I have continued to hear from constituents about the effect it is having in our town centres and public places. A crime that is not reported, investigated or followed up can quickly become a crime that is repeated. The response to antisocial behaviour should be measured not just by the number incidents recorded, but by whether people feel confident in reporting it and whether they see action. Two young men from Hednesford spoke to me about groups gathering in town centres and parks and how intimidating that can feel. When I welcomed pupils from Kingsmead school to Parliament, they raised concerns about phone thefts involving e-scooters. Cannock Chase district council has used public spaces protection orders to address persistent problems, including the rising antisocial use of vehicles and e-scooters, as well as street drinking. The Linkway retail park in Cannock offers a positive example. Staffordshire police identified it as a hotspot for car meets, racing and excessive noise. Officers issued warning letters to drivers identified through CCTV and held targeted patrols at peak times. Police community support officers also removed stickers that were advertising the meets. That led to a significant reduction in complaints. However, there had to be a nuanced response because for years before those issues arose, there had been respectful and well-managed car meets—a reminder that, as we target antisocial behaviour, appropriate use of public spaces should be supported. Partnership working does not remove the need for visible neighbourhood policing. I welcome Staffordshire police’s announcement of 53 additional officers, but the force also change PCSO shift patterns in June so half of them now finish at 7 pm and half of them at 9 pm. That has led to concerns among my constituents over whether PCSOs will be available when antisocial behaviour is happening. The neighbourhood policing guarantee should be judged not only by the number of officers recruited, but by whether communities see a consistent and effective police presence. I hope the Minister can speak about whether the Home Office will look at the impact of changing shift patterns on neighbourhood policing, particularly how we can ensure that the guarantee delivers visible, accessible policing in town centres and residential areas during the hours when antisocial behaviour is most likely to occur.