Crime clean up Crime busting residents in Alperton have stamped out anti social behaviour in Heather Park after they joined forces with Brent Council and local police to introduce a Dispersal Order. ANNA MACARTHUR finds out more. Fed up with nuisance behaviour on their doorstep - the determined group of residents and business owners met up with council officers and the Alperton Safer Neighbourhood Team (SNT) to make sweeping changes to their area. A business owner from Heather Parade said groups of people were blighting the lives of residents, while traders were losing money. He said: “They stayed out all night scaring passersby and would be drinking and aggressive. People didn’t want to walk past and I lost 30 per cent of my customers.” Alperton SNT made several attempts to tackle their behaviour. He added: “Police tried to talk to them and regularly patrolled the area but they used to run away and come back when the police had gone.”
Undeterred, police and council officers called a meeting of shop owners to help them tackle the problem. Each business was helped to ban the trouble makers from their shops. Brent Council’s Anti Social Behaviour Manager, Kiran Vagarwal, said: “We wanted to take a zero tolerance approach and work with the local people in the area. We wrote to residents asking them to record anti social behaviour and to contact police on every occasion. We visited victims reassuring them we were challenging this group. “We also organised a community action day where traders and residents turned out in force to clean up the alleyways that connect the open space and the parade of shops.”
The Dispersal Notice – to move on groups of two or more causing anti social behaviour – was issued to group members and they were asked to leave the area. Since the Dispersal Order, crime and anti social behaviour has fallen drastically. There has only been one arrest and over 100 people asked to leave the area. A resident said: “Everything is back to normal: they’re not allowed to come back immediately and I’m very happy.” Sgt Mike Feeney, Alperton SNT, said: “We will continue to monitor the area and take action against anyone causing anti social or nuisance behaviour in the local community.” For more information visit www.brent.gov.uk/communitysafety. To report anti social behaviour in your area call 020 8733 3932.
Working together: residents, traders and police officers turned out in force to clean up the alleyways.
DECEMBER 2010
THE BRENT MAGAZINE
23