CABINET members are set to consider the council’s approach to antisocial behaviour after claims there has been “little to no progress” on the issue being tackled in Colchester.

A motion was tabled at a full council meeting last month by councillor Lee Scordis, who called for a new approach to the problem.

He said a lack of progress on antisocial behaviour was down to what he termed Essex Police's “change of relationship” with the council.

Mr Scordis claimed a new approach to the issue ushered in by district commander for Colchester Colin Cox had loosened ties between the police and the council.

He said: “The antisocial behaviour is there for everyone to see – I have seen it myself and residents have complained about it.

“Things are just not getting better – they are getting worse.

“There are instances when the police just aren’t working with the council in the same way they were historically, and things are just going backwards.

“I am hoping we can get to a closer working relationship with the police which we used to have.

“It’s a change of leadership from the police side – the current leadership has different priorities and I think it’s clear those priorities aren’t working.”

Earlier this year £1.6million worth of funding to tackle antisocial behaviour in the city was announced. 

The funding will focus on two antisocial “hotspots” – Colchester High Street and Greenstead.

It came weeks after police promised a crackdown on antisocial yobs who have been terrorising staff and visitors at Colchester’s library.

Groups of youths subjected staff to verbal abuse as well as throwing books.

It was understood some of the young people had also been antisocial in other parts of the city.

Mr Scordis, who also used the motion last month to call on police to enforce the city centre’s public space protection order,  has argued for the return of the ‘Team Ten’ strategy.

The initiative was introduced in 2018 and involved ten dedicated officers focussing on city centre issues.

He said: “Team Ten meant the police force worked in line with council officers.

“Wardens would say ‘we have an issue here’ and officers would come and move people on if needed.

“If you have got police officers working with them it makes it a lot safer.”

He added the council has made the first step and it is now for Essex Police to respond.

“We will have to see what happens at the cabinet meeting – the ball is very firmly in the police’s court," he said. 

“If they don’t play ball then the council needs to get tough, otherwise, we will have the same problem.”

Essex Police response

District Commander for Colchester, Chief Inspector Colin Cox, said: "Colchester continues to be a really safe part of a really safe county.

"Crime is down across the district with more than 1,400 fewer offences reported in the last 12 months - down more than eight percent.

"And it is falling quicker in Colchester than the average across Essex.

"We've also seen 106 fewer incidents of anti-social behaviour in the last year and it's down 65 percent from five years ago.

"Business crime is really important to me because our local businesses are key to a prosperous community. I meet monthly with the Colchester Businesses Against Crime group and the Colchester BID to understand their concerns and we continue to explore. There has been a slight increase in shoplifting offences reported but I see that as a positive as we have encouraged businesses to report things to us.

"And we are taking action where incidents are reported. We've solved nearly 89 more shoplifting offences in the last 12 months, 27 percent more than the previous year.

“In two of our city centre wards – Castle and Christ Church – we’ve seen a three percent and 39 percent fall in shoplifting incidents respectively.

"We're working with businesses to help in the capture of evidence as well as working in partnership to support exclusion notices, enforcing Public Space Protection Orders, and deal with anti-social behaviour incidents which fall outside of this.

"I am also keen to implement a Clear, Hold, Build approach with partners - to clear an area of an issue, ensure new issues don't arise, and build the area back up for the community. This work must look at the root causes of the anti-social behaviour and enforcement is not the only answer.

"Violent, domestic, and sexual offences have all fallen, while fewer people had their homes broken into and there's been a drop in people being robbed.

"We have recorded more drugs offences but these are often the result of positive police work such as the responsible use of stop-and-search, warrants, and positive activity.

“The force has also invested in a dedicated team for the city centre. The Colchester Town Centre Team is made up of two sergeants and 10 PCs, as well as PCSOs.

“In our most recent independent survey 81 percent of people in Colchester said they believe we do a good or excellent job, the highest rating in the county.

“And nearly 75 percent said they felt they would get a good service from us if they were to report a crime.

"However, I am not complacent and there is always more to do and my message to people living and working here is to keep telling us about any issues they see or experience.

"Even if you don’t see an immediate response, these reports build a picture of where we’re seeing issues arise, allowing us to work with partners like Colchester Council to devote resources where they are needed, or to form a longer-term solution to meet the problem head-on."