We have received an increase in the number of reports of begging and anti-social behaviour from a small number of known individuals in The Clink. With these reports, we have also seen a rise in shop staff being subjected to verbal abuse, alongside threats of physical violence and committing further criminal offences.

Shops have worked with the neighbourhood policing team in recording each incident, which has greatly assisted us in securing ASB / court orders for repeat offenders. We have also been conducting daily re-assurance patrols and specific targeted operations to tackle this behaviour.

The neighbourhood policing team will always try our hardest to help those in genuine need to secure housing, identify sources of free meals and properly safeguard vulnerable members of our community. However, we will not tolerate those who continue to subject staff and members of the public to verbal abuse and threats of violence, and we will remain robust in our approach in managing this behaviour.

Now with many schools returning to a more 'normal' way of working following lockdown, the neighbourhood policing team has worked to increase our presence inside of schools on the beat. In total, we work with 5 different schools, these being St John and St Francis Primary School, Eastover Community Primary School, Willowdown Primary School, Bridgwater College Academy and Bridgwater and Taunton College. All PCSO's on the beat are school liaison officers, with most working with more than one school.

School engagement provides the team with a fantastic opportunity to build relationships with young people, and provides them friendly, approachable face to seek support and guidance if needed. We have found that this regular contact during school hours has aided in our ability manage incidents outside of the school grounds, as the bridges between young people and police have already been started to be built. We have also found great value in working with school staff to identify and manage lower-level concerns within the school community, with the aim to 'nip it in the bud' before it grows to wider concerns.

Due to the wide age range of students we work with (pre-school - 18+) there is no 'set menu' for school engagement. However, this can include lesson delivery, 1-2-1 support, responding to incidents, 'Cuppa with a Copper', pop-in beat surgeries, break/lunchtime patrol, assemblies, parent information sessions, police guest speakers and many more.

Our beat area is lucky to enjoy various green, open spaces for members of the community to use and enjoy, especially now moving into the summer months. These areas naturally attract crowds, especially groups of young people, who come to socialise with their friends. With this increase in people however, unfortunately comes with an increase in the frequency of anti-social behaviour and criminal offences.

We continue to 'hotspot patrol' our higher demand areas, including parks and open spaces, to ensure these areas are safe and inviting for everybody to use. Everyone has the right to take full advantage of these areas, and we want parents to know that their children will be safe while in the community.

You will continue to see us patrolling these areas during all hours of the day, as-well as new beat surgeries and bike marking events announced on our social media pages. If you see us, feel free to come and say hi!