Stuart Anderson MP has launched a Safer Neighbourhoods campaign. It follows his recent ‘Community Conversations’ survey which found that crime remains a serious issue for constituents. Stuart’s survey was completed by almost one hundred people across his constituency of Wolverhampton South West. Over fifty per cent of respondents were concerned about anti-social behaviour, and over three quarters wanted to see more police on patrol.
Stuart has made ensuring that Wolverhampton becomes a safer place to live in, work, and visit a top priority for his time as an MP. On the 8th of January, Stuart directly asked the Home Secretary what more can be done to protect constituents from crime and anti-social behaviour. The Home Secretary confirmed that record sums of funding are being invested to prevent crime and ensure that victims are safeguarded. As part of the funding settlement, the Government plans to increase the budget of the West Midlands Police by £35.9 million as part of its work to build safer communities and recruit 20,000 extra officers across the country by 2023. Over 6,620 extra officers have already been recruited, with 357 more officers in the West Midlands alone. West Midlands Police has also received an extra £3.37 million towards local Violence Reduction Units that bring organisations together to tackle violent crime, address its underlying causes, and fund projects that do positive preventative work with young people. Stuart has launched a survey to learn more about the impact that crime and anti-social behaviour has on the community and what changes constituents would like to see.
Stuart is also writing to constituents to make them aware of the contact details for support agencies, such as Victim Support, Citizens Advice Consumer Helpline, and Crimestoppers. Stuart has also designed a contact card with simple steps constituents can take to stay protected should they have any unexpected visitors on their doorstep. Constituents can put Stuart’s contact card in their windows to tell visitors that they do not wish to buy or sell and that any third parties must have their ID card ready for inspection. This can be downloaded and printed from his website.
Stuart Anderson MP said: “I want to do all that I can to ensure that Wolverhampton becomes a safer place to live in, work, and visit. My safer neighbourhoods campaign seeks views from constituents on what more can be done when it comes to tackling crime and anti-social behaviour. It will also ensure that constituents have access to the support that they need should they witness or become a victim of a crime and work with our key partners to ensure that we can build back safer from COVID-19. I am encouraged that the Government has already planned to invest an additional £35 million in the West Midlands Police. This will help us to deliver on our pledge to recruit 20,000 police officers across our country. We have already recruited more than 6,000 and our area has seen 357 of these on the beat.”
