Street set to unite under police team (From Swindon Advertiser)
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Street set to unite under police team
7:00pm Tuesday 14th February 2012 in News By Josh Layton
PC Tim North on Wood Street, where boundaries are changing
A QUIRK of boundaries that meant Old Town’s busiest street at night was split between two police teams will disappear under electoral reforms.
Wood Street, which is home to a mix of pubs, bars and restaurants, has been divided along the middle of the road.
The anomaly meant incidents were registered as crime statistics in the town centre on the north side, and Lawn and Old Town just yards away to the south.
From May, however, the entire street will fall under Swindon’s town centre team.
PC Tim North, the community beat manager for Lawn and Old Town, will lose the south side after eight years of being a familiar presence in the area.
He said: “The electoral boundaries have been determined by population and Wood Street has been that way since time immemorial.
“The south side with Baker Street has been mine and the other side falls under Eastcott ward, or the town centre team.
“Patrols will still take place in the same manner with the same number of officers and the night-time economy will still be policed in the same way.The only difference is the statistics will be transferred to the other area.”
PC North said: “It hasn’t been the case that we’re not been investigating crimes because they are a few yards outside of our boundaries.
“There is overlap across police boundaries and Wood Street has been no different.
“I have built up a relationship with people here and if businesses contact me I’m still going to deal with them as I have done previously.”
The change is being made to implement recommendations made by the Local Government Boundary Commission for England.
New ward arrangements for Swindon have completed a 40-day period of Parliamentary scrutiny and will come into force at the local elections on May 3.
The Adver revealed earlier this month how the Home Office’s crime-mapping website pinpointed the area around Wood Street and Devizes Road as the biggest trouble-spot in the south of Swindon for anti-social behaviour, violent crime and criminal damage.
But traders said there had been few problems by day and the number of shoppers are increasing.
Police also say crime in the area is down.
