Police 'Tardis' contact point aims to cut anti-social behaviour (From Bournemouth Echo)
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Police 'Tardis' contact point aims to cut anti-social behaviour
11:00am Tuesday 1st May 2012 in Bournemouth By Stephen Bailey
CONTACT: A Dorset Police van parked in Boscombe Precinct as an advice point
POLICE are considering installing a ‘Tardis’ in Boscombe Precinct to cut down anti-social behaviour.
They are hoping to put a modern police-style contact point at a point in the precinct that is a “hub” for local street drinkers.
Boscombe Police are drawing up ideas to put before the planning board.
PC Will Martindale told the April meeting of the area’s business forum: “The Inspector would like to put a ‘Tardis’ outside McDonalds.
“There are issues in that area and this would be putting our stamp back in the area.
“Hopefully we will be able to staff it fairly regularly and hopefully there will be local businesses applying for sponsorship. The designs are being drawn up so watch this space.”
Cllr Jane Kelly, Boscombe West, said: “I think having the ‘Tardis’ there will deter any anti-social behaviour by giving the police a permanent presence.”
Cllr Phil Stanley-Watts, of Boscombe West, has been calling for the return of police boxes in Boscombe for years.
He said updated versions could be used for reporting crime and would make the public feel safer.
He raised the idea with former Boscombe Inspector Mark Kelly in 2008.
Boscombe Police have been parking a police van outside McDonalds on Thursdays and Saturdays – the market days.
PC Will Martindale told the April meeting of the Boscombe business forum: “It’s our hub, unfortunately, for anti-social behaviour.”
Comments(13)
X Old Bill
says...
11:53am Tue 1 May 12
ILOVEBOURNEMOUTH
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11:56am Tue 1 May 12
ShuttleX
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12:04pm Tue 1 May 12
You will notice that once again Cllr Kelly seems to be living in dream world. Where does she get the idea that this will mean a permanent police presence in Boscombe? If she bothered to listen to what PC Martindale says, ie “Hopefully we will be able to staff it fairly regularly and hopefully there will be local businesses applying for sponsorship," she will see that this is nothing but a gimmick that has not been thought out, and will not be manned by police officers permanently like she seems to think. That is of course if proper police bother to turn up. If it does go ahead, it will be manned by powerless PCSO's. How about a proper police presence in Boscombe and a zero tollerance policy towards druggies/drunks/begg
ers and anti social behaviour?. I've seen police turning a blind eye to those breaking the no drinking in public ban, obviously because they don't want the reams of paperwork. Police and PCSO ignoring cyclists riding through Boscombe. Ask any store security in Boscombe how long it takes for the Police to arrive to deal with shoplifters, if they turn up at all. Most stores tell their staff to just kick the shoplifters out and ban them. The Police and the Council couldn't care less about Boscombe, and no amount of waffle by the likes of Cllr Kelly will change that. Staying on the gravy train comes to mind.
The Renegade Master
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12:14pm Tue 1 May 12
Bob49
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12:17pm Tue 1 May 12
Perhaps they could twirl their boton and whistle a meery tune as they go about their business, stopping only to ruffle the heads of young scamps and helping old ladies across the road.
Boscombe has problems because of the people who live their. Those with drink and drug problems. Disperse them back to whence they came, which could easily be done by stopping landlords from earning a small fortune housing these people in what are no more than slums.
Deal with the cause, not the effect.
MikeFrench
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1:07pm Tue 1 May 12
Crime doesn't just happen on Christchurch road.........
Controversial But True
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1:54pm Tue 1 May 12
wonderway
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3:15pm Tue 1 May 12
derek_acorah
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3:28pm Tue 1 May 12
It's the 'cure all' for policing in the modern world. Wherever there are problems, the knee jerk reaction is always to install a prop from a science fiction programme. Expect to see a model of the 'Liberator' from Blakes 7 in Rossmore, and some Triffids in Turlin Moor. More useful would be 'Rover' (the big balloon thing that chased people) from 'The Prisoner'. At least it would be able to assist the police in thier duties, by persuing criminals.
Baywolf
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4:12pm Tue 1 May 12
Bob49 wrote:Dear Bob, the cause is the lack of street police on a daily basis. Maybe if people thought they could not venture out drunk and disorderly or stoned on whatever and get away with it maybe the street policing would address the cause...not the cure.
"Maybe daily routine police officers on the beat would be a better idea" said the spokesman for the flat earth society.
Perhaps they could twirl their boton and whistle a meery tune as they go about their business, stopping only to ruffle the heads of young scamps and helping old ladies across the road.
Boscombe has problems because of the people who live their. Those with drink and drug problems. Disperse them back to whence they came, which could easily be done by stopping landlords from earning a small fortune housing these people in what are no more than slums.
Deal with the cause, not the effect.
Bob49
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4:13pm Tue 1 May 12
and the likelihood of them, coincidentally, being close to a crime is miniscule - in fact virtually zilch, as their presence merely moves the problem elsewhere.
We need less of this absurd Daily Mail style pandering and more actually dealing with the problems. If drug dealing is going on outside Macdonalds then plonking a 'tadis' there will simply move it elsewhere, somewhere a 'copper on the beat' can show them it is safe to deal.
If drug/drink users are banned from shops then ban them from the whole area. Simply allowing landlords to profit from exhorbitant rents whilst their tenants 'run wild' is completely ignoring the cause.
But then, they may well be their intention.
muscliffman
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5:14pm Tue 1 May 12
Start by preventing lovely family homes becoming HMOs, to the benefit of greedy Landlords (and others, no doubt).
Then don't build the Sovereign Centre in it's present ugly form, do not pedestrianise the main Christchurch Road - and retain the lovely yellow trolleybuses that used to glide along it. Do not close the Railway Station.
Discourage the conversion and demolition of Hotels south of the main road and their replacement by more, but purpose built, HMOs.
Do not sell off Honeycombe Chine in (allegedly) dodgy circumstances, do not build an associated useless 'surf reef' with adjoining unsaleable 'surf pods' do not turn Boscombe Pier into a crumbling jetty.........etc.
Above all elect different and more far effectual ward Councillors and employ competent Council Officers.
Most importantly enable and enforce proper Policing with no pointless publicly funded gimmicks.
Baywolf says...
11:40am Tue 1 May 12