THE second meeting of the Eldene crime forum took place this evening in which residents concerned about rising levels of anti-social behaviour met with members of the local police.

Chaired by former South Swindon UKIP Parliamentary candidate Martin Costello, the meeting was also attended by police and crime commissioner Angus Macpherson, community policing team inspector David Hobman and community co-ordinator for East Swindon Phil Day.

The meeting was intended to address the crime wave which has swept over the Eldene and Liden areas over the past 18 months.

Incidents include thefts from cars, burglaries, drug dealing and anti-social behaviour.

PCSO Day said: “Eldene has been on our radar for quite a few months now. Things such as car thefts are what we are looking at all across Swindon, and will be focusing on in this particular area.

“We understand there has been large gatherings of youths in the evenings, and we are working to address that.”

Questions were raised as to the effectiveness of CCTV footage and the efficiency of the police’s 101 hotline, which inspector Hobman conceded could be better.

One resident, an animated David Dubery, questioned why it is that offenders seem to get off so lightly.

He said: “People get away with a slap on the wrist. There has to be a deterrent and there have to be tougher sentences. I think that will make a real difference”

The lack of a regular police presence and bobby-on-the-beat was also mentioned.

In response, PCSO Day said: “There is not a huge pool of PCSOs, unfortunately. Everyone wants to see someone on the beat, and that’s what every PCSO wants to do.

“But in the current climate, there is a tendency for those allocated in a certain area to support others in a different area if need be.”

There was slight confusion over technical legal issues, and a couple of residents were clearly bamboozled when Angus Macpherson explained how the legal system worked.

Responding to Mr Macpherson’s point that magistrates must follow the Magistrates Court Sentencing Guidelines, one unnamed man said: “Who’s responsible for that book, then?”

Mr Macpherson returned to the point he has made before about Wiltshire Police performing well on very limited resources.

He said: “We are constrained in how much money we receive and we are using what we have very efficiently.”

Organiser Martin Costello thought it had been a very useful meeting.

Speaking afterwards, he said: “I am delighted with tonight’s forum. It is a really good job the police are doing and we fully support them.

“We want to help them as much as we possibly can and it’s all about working together to tackle these issues.”