Prostitutes told to accept help, or face the law (From Swindon Advertiser)

Prostitutes told to accept help, or face the law

4:00pm Friday 3rd February 2012 in Local By David Wiles

WILTSHIRE Police are introducing a new approach to tackle prostitution and help sex workers to give up working on the streets of Swindon.

The force intends to bring in Engagement and Support Orders (ESOs) to clamp down on the problem, which is still focused around Manchester Road and County Road in Broadgreen.

Under the orders, anyone caught soliciting will be given the option of avoiding prosecution by agreeing to engage with support agencies and tackle the cause of their prostitution.

However, if they do not comply, they will be dealt with by the courts for the original offence.

The Adver reported in October that Operation Dobbin, which was set up in 2008 to deal with prostitution, had become a victim of the £15m cuts in the Wiltshire Police budget.

The operation, led by PC Sophia McIntyre, managed to reduce the number of sex workers in the town centre from 42 to only a handful.

The revised approach was outlined by Inspector Keith Ewart, inspector for the central sector, at Swindon Council’s safer and stronger overview and scrutiny committee on Thursday.

He said the new approach aimed to provide the necessary support for sex workers, but also had a greater emphasis on enforcement because this is what the community wants.

He said: “What we intend to do is bring in an ESO. That will require the girls that are working on the streets to engage with our workers.

“Quite simply, they will avoid a criminal prosecution if they comply with the requirement to engage with drug workers, alcohol workers, housing, whatever it may be.

“If they complete that satisfactorily, that will be the process complete. If they fail, they will be prosecuted for the offence of loitering. It’s a two-handed approach.”

Insp Ewart said Swindon has a pool of around 20 prostitutes, about five of whom are on the streets on any one night. He said the girls, who are all aged over 18 and from Swindon, are on the streets for various reasons, mostly drug addiction.

He said that in the last two to three months, police have dealt with 37 kerb crawlers.

Insp Ewart said clients, some of whom travel in from as far as Westbury, are dealt with through anti-social behaviour contracts, where they pledge not to seek out prostitution in that area.

These last for three months and if they breach the agreement then they are dealt with for the offence.

Insp Ewart revealed that he had put in a bid for an extra beat manager in the Broadgreen area to deal with prostitution.

Richard Palusinski, head of community safety at Swindon Community Safety Partnership, said: “I wholeheartedly support the robust policing of sex workers.”