Police patrols do cut crime; here’s the proof and let’s keep it that way – Andrew Vine

Crime has fallen dramatically during the lockdown, and one resolution for us all as the country moves tentatively towards some sort of normality must be to keep it that way.

According to the National Police Chiefs’ Council, in the four weeks to May 10, crime overall is down by 25 per cent compared with the same period last year.

Specific categories fell even further – rape by 28 per cent, burglaries by 36 per cent, vehicle crime by 40 per cent and assaults by 30 per cent. Disturbingly though, domestic violence rose by four per cent.

The closure of pubs and clubs undoubtedly plays a big part in the fall in assaults, which are often fuelled by drink, and people being at home for much of the time must be a deterrent to burglars and car thieves.

But there’s surely another factor at work here – the new-found visibility of police on time-honoured foot patrol.

In my corner of Yorkshire, it’s rare to see officers on the beat rather than in patrol cars. But since the lockdown, they’ve been around, and it’s the most welcome of sights.

And unlike the Durham officers who found Dominic Cummings, the hypocritical adviser to the Prime Minister who had broken the lockdown by travelling 260 miles, a contemptible example of “do as I say, not what I do”, the police in my area haven’t had to deal with any breaches that I know of. Instead, they’ve made friends and useful contacts. That’s no surprise, because people like seeing officers around. It’s reassuring and it’s a deterrent.

Like many other areas, mine has its share of small-time crooks with ever-lengthening criminal records. Everybody knows who they are and so do the police.

Since officers have been on patrol, they’ve been noticeably quieter. The late-night comings and goings of cars – often a hallmark of drug-dealing – have stopped.

Knowing the police are around, and that there is a greater chance of being caught, makes wrongdoers keep their heads down. Maybe it might even persuade some that crime isn’t worth the hassle.

There have been other benefits. Officers and residents have come to know each other – simply stopping to chat to people out in their front gardens will have been useful to police out on patrol.

I know neighbours who have passed on tips about suspicious activity – nothing to do with infringing the lockdown – that could prove to be valuable intelligence, maybe even a piece in a jigsaw that enables police to clear up a crime that has previously been reported.

This sort of dialogue only happens in face-to-face conversations, when residents have the time and opportunity to explain what they have seen and why they thought it suspicious, and officers can get a feel for the area where it has happened. A closer bond between police and public is good for everybody apart from the criminals.

It’s an old-fashioned concept to have police on the beat – and one that takes up a lot of resources when all forces have fewer officers than they need – but it works.

A former chief constable I know insists that foot patrols are of immense value in both solving crime and deterring it from happening. He started out on the beat, and by simply talking to people, every shift yielded intelligence about who was responsible for wrongdoing in his area.

Those same patrols also brought him into contact with young people at risk of going off the rails and parents worried about what to do. Talking helped save them, as did liaising with other agencies which offered help and support.

He can never know for sure how many people were stopped from being sucked in to criminality as a result – and nor can the countless other officers who have intervened in the same way – but their work is a service both to society and the families involved.

And it can’t happen without the personal touch. The police have the most difficult of jobs, which grow harder with every passing year as new challenges present themselves.

The Government has already launched the recruitment drive for 20,000 more officers to plug the gaps forces are struggling to contend with.

When they are finally in place, which will take time, greater emphasis should be put on forging closer links with communities by maintaining a high-profile presence on the streets with foot patrols.

These past few difficult weeks have shown that it works, just as they have demonstrated how important good neighbours are. Our communities are stronger for that, and part of their fabric has become the friendly, reassuring presence of police on the beat.

Once this is all over, we’d like to hang onto them.

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