Lancs Police say ‘no’ again to extra powers for PCSOs

My fellow Derby Ward Conservative Councillors and I have this week responded to Lancashire Police’s latest refusal to grant extra powers for our local PCSOs.

Following a recent decision of Full Council, West Lancashire Borough Council’s Chief Executive wrote to Chief Constable Steve Finnigan, calling on him to give his frontline PCSOs extra powers.

Remember, currently 95% of discretionary powers in Lancashire are not used, whilst in neighbouring Wigan, PCSOs use more than 65% of the discretionary powers available to them.

Cllr Paul Greenall, who took the matter to Full Council in April, said: “The Chief Constable’s reply is extremely disappointing. He claims that by giving PCSOs more powers, it would cost more in wages, training and equipment. But other forces, like Greater Manchester and Kent, have done this, so why can’t Lancashire?

“The financial mess that Labour left our country in means everyone in the public and private sectors are expected to do more for less. In not giving PCSOs extra powers, Lancashire Police are limiting their impact in tackling crime at the very time when budgets are being squeezed and every penny counts. And they are not doing something that PCSOs, Unions and the public want.”

Cllr Adrian Owens said: “The Chief Constable’s refusal to grant extra powers mean that West Lancashire residents are once again suffering from a postcode lottery. How can it be fair that in some cases, like in Up Holland, residents are getting a two tier policing service depending on what side of the road they live on?

“Giving PCSOs more powers would have freed up frontline Police Officers to deal with other serious crimes. Instead, they are having to deal with relatively minor offences which could be dealt with by PCSOs if only they had the powers. It is waste of valuable resources.”

For my own part, I have spoken to many PCSOs who have indicated they would warmly welcome extra powers. They want to help keep our communities as safe as possible, but if they are not given the powers to do so, it’s almost like they’re being asked to do their job with one hand tied behind their backs.

It is a shame though West Lancs Labour Group voted against our calls for extra PCSO powers. In doing so, they have shown themselves to be soft on crime and defenders of a two tier policing system which is plainly to the detriment of West Lancashire taxpayers.

Councillors to debate my calls for extra PCSO powers

Borough councillors are set to formally debate my calls for extra PCSO powers next week.

A motion on the subject has been placed on next Wednesday’s agenda by my Derby Ward colleague Cllr Paul Greenall, who is also the Borough Council’s Conservative Cabinet member for Community Safety.

You may remember I launched a campaign last month calling on the Chief Constable of Lancashire to hand down more discretionary powers to his frontline Community Support Officers. Since then, my campaign has been backed by leading councillors and residents.

I’m delighted this important issue will be debated publicly by councillors next week.

At present, out of 22 discretionary powers available to the Chief Constable, just one has been issued – the power to hand out fixed penalty notices for dog fouling. We have a situation where 95% of discretionary powers are not used in Lancashire, whereas in neighbouring Wigan, PCSOs there use 67% of the discretionary powers available to them.

This is having a real effect on the frontline as streets on the West Lancshire/Wigan border are getting a two tier policing service, depending on whether you live on the Wigan side of the road or the West Lancashire side.

I’ve also been told of incidents where a PCSO has attended an incident and wanted to issue a Fixed Penalty Notice but didn’t have the power, so had to radio back to the station for a PC to come out and do it for them. This is a ridiculous waste of precious resources.

I hope councillors support my calls for the Chief Constable of Lancashire to hand down more discretionary powers to our local PCSOs. My message is simple – it’s time to give PCSOs the extra powers they need to make our communities safer instead of expecting them to police with one hand tied behind their backs.

Why I want our PCSOs to have more powers

I have today officially launched my campaign calling for more powers for local Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs).

It comes after details I obtained from Lancashire Constabulary under the Freedom of Information Act reveal that out of 22 powers available to the county’s PCSOs at the discretion of the Chief Constable, just one has been issued – the power to hand out fixed penalty notices for dog fouling.

Among the 95% of discretionary powers which have not been issued include:

• Power to issue penalty notices in respect of offences of disorder
• Power to issue fixed penalty notices for truancy
• Power to issue fixed penalty notices for excluded pupil found in a public place
• Power to issue fixed penalty notices for graffiti and fly-posting
• Power to disperse groups and remove persons under 16 to their place of residence
• Power to use reasonable force to prevent a detained person making off
• Power to remove truants from designated premises
• Power to search for alcohol and tobacco
• Power to serve closure notice for licensed premises persistently selling to children

I was prompted to look into the issue of PCSO powers as a result of working with Derby Ward residents on police enforcement issues.

I was surprised my FOI request revealed that more than 95% of discretionary powers for PCSOs are not being used. For PCSOs to be
as effective as possible, they should have as full a range of powers as possible at their disposal.

I wrote to the Chief Constable of Lancashire Constabulary, urging him to review this and see if PCSOs can be given more of the discretionary powers which are within his gift to grant. The response I received stated there is ‘no current appetite’ to extend the use of discretionary
powers.

Every organisation is now being asked to do more for less to help pay off the national debt. As a result, taxpayers have a right to ensure they are getting even more bang for their hard-earned buck.

With that in mind, I urge the Chief Constable to think again; give our local PCSOs extra powers and help them to make our communities as safe as possible.