Tough new measures announced to tackle anti-social behaviour in Lancaster

Business leaders and representatives from the public sector met on Wednesday (November 6) to discuss developing a set of long-term joint actions to tackle the problem, including an extra 80 hours in patrol time by street wardens.

The Safe and Secure Lancaster Partnership meeting brought together representatives from the police, Lancaster City Council, NHS, the fire service and the business community at Lancaster Town Hall.

The event was an opportunity to discuss the root causes of social issues such as anti-social behaviour and how they can be tackled by providing more support, prevention and enforcement, to help make the city an even better place to live, visit and spend time.

It also heard how the city council has agreed to fund an extra 80 hours in patrol time by the Lancaster Business Improvement District (BID) wardens. These extra hours will enable an increased presence across the city centre over the weekend of Light Up Lancaster and in the run-up to Christmas, and are in addition to 20 hours the council funded in October to support the Lancaster Music Festival.

“Lancaster is already a safe place to be but like any town or city has issues with crime and anti-social behaviour that need to be tackled,” said Coun Caroline Jackson, deputy leader of Lancaster City Council.

“The aim of this partnership is to create an even safer environment for people to spend time and our businesses to trade. We intend to build upon our history of working closely together to tackle issues of anti-social behaviour more effectively and support the local economy.”

Tony Johnson, Lancaster BID manager, said: “This is really great news from a Lancaster BID perspective. Light Up Lancaster is one of the biggest events in footfall terms annually and attracts a lot of visitors, so it’s imperative we have the city looking and feeling its best.

“Our Christmas programme is the busiest we have ever had with various events in November and December. To have that extra presence on the ground for the festive period will reassure businesses and make the city feel a warm and welcoming place at a very busy time of year.”

Sgt Lindsay Brown, Partnerships Officer for Lancaster and Morecambe Police, added: “Safe & Secure Lancaster has had some excellent successes over the last few years. Widening the partnership will bring great support in tackling the issues we face head on and assist to reduce anti-social behaviour still further.

"Lancaster is a great place to live, work and socialise, and we want to deal more effectively with the minority of people who can occasionally spoil it for everyone else.”