You Spoke: Your local Councillors, the Met and the Home Office Acted
In response to the 2015 petition to Westminster City Council and to London’s Deputy Mayor for Policing, your Councillors have secured a 73% reduction in aggressive beggars operating on the Edgware Road and environs since July 2015. There’s more to do, but here is some of the other action WCC, working with the Metropolitan Police, Home Office Immigration Enforcement and other agencies, has taken:
- Provision of intelligence resulting in multiple charges for immigration and
money laundering offences and further investigations into serious organised
crime at three commercial premises; - The securing of two high profile sites, both long term hotspots vulnerable to
rough sleeping-related anti-social behaviour, drug use and prostitution over a period of years; - The protection and safety of multiple vulnerable tenants, through the trial and
Criminal Behaviour Order application against the UK’s most prosecuted landlord; - Investigations and benefit fraud referrals into thirteen brothels;
- Coordination of Police and local Charities to assist Kidnapping and Human Trafficking Command (SC09) with live investigations;
- Crime Prevention Design coordination and resourcing for on-street vice
Hotspots; - The securing of a dedicated Police resource and identification of funds to assist in delivery;
- Use of WCC mapping for MPS vice intelligence informing the strategic targeting of a serious organised crime ring;
- Prosecution applications for a cohort of 12 homeless, intravenous heroin users migrating across the wards of Hyde Park, Little Venice and Church Street.
Complaints About BST, BBC Radio 2 and Proms in the Park are Falling
The six BST concerts in Hyde Park attracted about 350,000 people and only 14 complaints, thanks to work by your councillors to keep the promoters working hard on noise control and litter and crowd management.
Some residents in St George’s Fields and elsewhere still feel that “the allowable noise is still far too noisy”. The complaints total was well down on last year but it may be some residents feel there is no point calling the complaints hotline.
We’d really encourage anyone who is upset by the noise to call the number, which we will send out in this newsletter closer to the time. Callers can receive a site visit from WCC noise control staff in their home to test and record the sound levels, which must keep to 75 decibels at the monitoring points as a condition of the Royal Parks’ licence.
The Radio 2 Live event in September attracted 11 complaints over two nights and Proms in the Park none. New relay towers were added in order to reduce the sound boosting at the rear. Enthusiastic rendition of Land of Hope and Glory and the National Anthem caused a slight over-run - but residents may feel it’s a small price to pay for a great British event.
Improving the Streets of Our Ward
Your Councillors are constantly seeking to improve the streets in Hyde Park ward and Heather Acton met with Councillor Melvyn Caplan (cabinet member City Management) and Councillor Jacqui Wilkinson (deputy cabinet member) and some of their team to identify specific spots where pavements, highways, road linings and lighting could be improved.
We did spot a number of kerbs and paving stones that needed attention, some utilities covers needing replacement, a shop operating as a shisha cafe, some illegal parking suspensions. Action is being taken on all these matters - and while we were walking round, we also found some dumped rubbish that could be traced to the dumper, so those will be followed up too!
Do report highway (and other) problems that you see at the Westminster "Report It!" Section of the Council website - your comments are always helpful.
