[P]eter McCall is marking his first year in Office as Cumbria’s Police and Crime Commissioner.
As Police and Crime Commissioner, Peter is elected to be the voice of the people of Cumbria and hold the Chief Constable to account for policing in the county. He is also responsible for commissioning and supporting victims of crime.
A key part of the role is bringing together community safety and criminal justice partners to make sure local priorities are joined up.
Police and Crime Commissioner, Peter McCall said: “I am immensely proud and privileged to be your Police and Crime Commissioner. During my first year I have been extremely impressed by the dedication and hard work that goes into making Cumbria the safe place that we have all come to expect.
“With your help, I have set the Police and Crime Plan which lays out the policing objectives for Cumbria Constabulary. There are eight main priorities from tackling crime and anti-social behaviour to supporting victims.
“Some of our achievements to date include: I do believe in action over talk and;
“I have launched my Youth Commission which gives young people in the county the opportunity to have their voice heard as well as influence policing of the future.
“Securing £3million of Home Office funding to improve police, health, and social care providers support to people in mental health crisis.
“I have been able to support a number of local projects through my Community and Property funds getting support into the local community at a level which will make a real difference to people’s lives and where they live.
“For example:
“Funding to Appleby Heritage to deliver free training to young people focusing on road safety, speed awareness and the effect of criminal records on life choices;
“Age UK funding to deliver a project aimed at raising awareness of domestic abuse in older people;
“Mirehouse Residents Group awarded funding to provide a community based youth provision for young people aged between 11 and 18 years aimed at building positive relations and self-esteem;
“Triple A project have been funded to develop an awareness training film of risks of people with autism becoming victims and/or perpetrators of crime through vulnerability and exploitation.
“Cybercrime is an issue in the county and I will be launching in the next few weeks a project that will enable us all to help to keep ourselves safe when we go online. The project will be rolled out across the county.
“Neighbourhood policing is critical in how the county is policed and I’ve been able to further boost this by an additional three inspectors dedicated to developing better links with communities. These posts will also work closely to increase the number of Special Constables.
“I will continue to ensure that we have the best policing service that the county can afford. I will be looking at how we can ensure that Blue Light Services work together to deliver the best possible service particularly the synergies between police and fire. We will also see where we can collaborate with other agencies to reduce costs as a critical issue for me is to protect the number of officers in our County.
“I am conscious that every penny of public money must be well spent. I am proactively looking at ways to reduce my office costs at a time when there is still some uncertainty over police funding due to potential changes to the Funding Formula.
“I am a great believer in ‘we – not they’ and this is clearly evident here in Cumbria where it really is a team effort from members of the public, partners to the police in keeping us all safe. I hope you’ll agree we have made a good start but I am not complacent there is much more to come.”
