n MESSAGE FROM AVON & SOMERSET PCC Stand with us against knife crime

IN May I attended the first ever Avon and Somerset Police Outstanding Policing Awards, a remarkable opportunity to honour the outstanding achievements of the men and women who dedicate their lives to keeping our communities safe.

May also marked the start of Operation Sceptre, a national targeted initiative to reduce knife-related violence, increase public safety and engage communities in the fight against knife crime.

Proactively tackling knife crime is central to my police and crime plan, and I would encourage people to safely discard any weapons or knives they may carry in the ‘weapons surrender bins’ installed by Avon and Somerset Police.

The bins are in areas where we know they are needed, and offer people a safe and anonymous way of getting rid of a weapon. If you know someone who carries a weapon, please encourage them to surrender it. You can find your nearest bin in the crime prevention advice section of the police website.

Avon and Somerset Police and partners already carry out a large range of activities to raise awareness of and combat knife crime, and the Violence Reduction Units’ work is at the heart of this, delivering talks to young people in schools, running Blunt Truth workshops in partnership with the NHS and hosting pop-up information stands.

While we have seen a reduction in street-based knife crime across Avon and Somerset, more still needs to be done to ensure people feel safe in their communities. Let’s raise awareness, educate, and stand against knife crime.

As the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners’ national fraud lead, I also welcome the publication of the government’s long-awaited strategy, setting out how it plans to tackle fraud and bring more offenders to justice.

This strategy, and the accompanying Economic Crime Plan, is an important step forward. I fully support the Government’s three-pillar approach to stop, block, pursue, and to educate the public.

I have been able to have a direct impact on two important areas within the strategy, which will ensure there is national central coordination of prevention and awareness messaging, and ensure banks are delaying and doing extra due diligence checks on large BACS payments out of accounts that could be fraudulent.

However, the strategy does not recognise some fundamental challenges, including the highly complex landscape of investigating fraud, which needs to be fully supported.

I am calling for more to be done to recognise this crime’s significant impact and harm on victims. Fraud can leave lasting mental and physical trauma, with some victims taking their own lives.

Finally, I am pleased to say that the Commissioner’s Crime Prevention Fund grant has opened for applications.

This grant, set up by the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner in partnership with Somerset

With Police and Crime Commissioner Mark Shelford

Community Foundation and Quartet Community Foundation, aims to reduce crime and anti-social behaviour through community projects and activities.

Community groups previously awarded this grant have delivered some fantastic crime-reducing initiatives and activities.

I implore local organisations to apply for this worthwhile funding, to reduce anti-social behaviour and make our communities safe.

ONE of the first migrant birds to arrive and lift our spirits after the long winter is the chiffchaff. They will have migrated from the Mediterranean or North Africa and announce their presence by sitting on a tree and loudly calling their name ’chiff-chaff chiff-chaff chiff-chaff ‘

Stand for a while in your local park or woodland and you may hear the insistent, rhythmic call. Catching sight of the chiffchaff is more of a challenge as it darts among the branches pecking at the new leaves and flowers to find small insects, with its tail pumping up and down as though full of joy to be here for the summer. How would you recognise a chiffchaff ? They are small, pale brown or olive green warblers with a creamy yellow chest. I watched one recently that flitted from branch to branch, pecking at the new leaves and chiff-chaffing with enthusiastic tail pumping, seemingly without drawing a breath !

They will nest among brambles or nettles, quite close to the ground, building dome shaped nests of stems and leaves, lined with feathers.This reminds us how important the wild bramble patches are for the many birds that nest there in relative safety from predators.

Alastair Fraser

Bristol Ornithological Club

Painting

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• Faux/broken colour work Tel: 0117 9422589 Mob: 07814 113038 robertogborn@yahoo.co.uk