There’s been a huge drop in the number of reported incidents of anti-social behaviour in two parts of York previously blighted by trouble.
The number of incidents has fallen after North Yorkshire Police began a more proactive approach.
Called Project Deployment, it’s a ‘hotspot response’ policing initiative funded by £1 million of Home Office money.
This aims to “increase trust and confidence in policing, deter offending, and make people feel safer in the communities they live in”, the force said.
The extra money has enabled North Yorkshire Police to boost the number of officers on the streets, with high-visibility police patrols targeting hotspots at key times.
A total of 45 ASB hotspots were identified across North Yorkshire.
In these areas there’s been a 13.17% reduction in reported trouble between April 2023 and March 2024, following more than 14,000 extra patrols.
Some of the hotspot areas with the most significant reductions in reported incidents during this period were:
- York Ethel Ward, Haxby – 76.92% reduction
- York: Foxwood Lane area – 61.9% reduction
- Scarborough: Trafalgar Square area – 60.66% reduction
- Malton: Sycamore Avenue – 59.26% reduction
- Harrogate: Skipton Road – 50% reduction
- Thirsk: Market Place – 50% reduction.
Superintendent Victoria Taylor, head of local policing support at North Yorkshire Police, said:
“Hotspot policing has not only delivered impressive reductions in crime but has also led to tangible results in protecting vulnerable residents.
“The feedback from communities across the North Yorkshire Police force region shows that our hard work is being noticed, and that people are feeling safer.”
She said anti-social behaviour takes many forms, from aggressive, noisy or abusive behaviour to neighbourhood disturbances involving drugs, abandoned cars or animals.
If you’ve witnessed anything like this behaviour, you can report it to North Yorkshire Police by going here.