Agenda of Community Safety Committee Meeting

Hurstville City Council – Community Safety Committee Meeting Tuesday, 10 December 2013

5. Agenda Items

CSC020-13 Community Survey

Report Author/s	Manager Community Services, Mr D Linden
File	12/2127
Previous Reports Referenced	No
Community Strategic Plan Pillar	Social and Cultural Development
Existing Policy?	No	New Policy Required?	No
Financial Implications	Nil

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The results of the community safety survey are submitted

AUTHOR RECOMMENDATION

THAT the information be received and noted.

REPORT DETAIL

A Community Survey on Community Safety was recently conducted on-line and by distribution of hard copies to a number of organisations and groups (copy of survey and summary of replies attached).

A total of 62 responses were received. Not all respondents answered all questions.

Some of the main points arising out of the surveys:

· The majority of respondents (43) were over 55 years of age

· Most respondents (48) felt safe or very safe

· In response to the question “What makes you feel unsafe?” a total of 15 respondents rated Poor Street Lighting as high with Graffiti and Vandalism and People Affected by Drugs on the Street each rated high by 11 respondents.

· A total of 24 respondents considered crime to be under control with 4 considering it not under control and 17 indicating that they didn’t know.

As can be seen from the summary of other comments in the attachment some are quite general in nature and are not specific to Hurstville City and others are broad observations.

It should be noted that in relation to street lighting that quite often there is the perception that street lighting is not considered adequate however it is submitted that this in the main is related to expectations which vary from person to person and which sometimes can be unrealistic. Street lighting generally conforms to the requirements of Australian Standard 1158 and can be upgraded where there is an established need (eg high crime area) in the interests of community safety.

These results will be collated with the feedback received in the other community surveys and will be taken into consideration in Council’s future strategic planning.

APPENDICES

Appendix View1

Community Safety Survey final results

2 How old are you?

Less than 12 12-24 25-55 (13) over 55 (43)

3 How safe do you feel in your local community at present?

Very safe (9) Safe (39) Unsafe (8) Very unsafe (6)

4 What makes you feel unsafe?

Please rate one or more of the following as High, Medium or Low:

Living alone or being left alone at home H (8) M (12) L (20)

Poor street lighting H (15) M (16) L (13)

Too few people out at night H (7) M (20) L (19)

Street litter H (4) M (15) L (28)

Graffiti and vandalism H (11) M (15) L (17)

Intoxicated people I see in the streets H (8) M (15) L (20)

People affected by drugs I see in the streets H (11) M (11) L (22)

Not knowing my neighbours H (5) M (19) L (21)

Not speaking English well H (7) M (4) L (28)

Other people not speaking English well H (7) M (10) L (24)

Threatening behaviour - by (please Specify:

Neighbours on drugs, have not been a target, strangers

Media reports of (please specify)

Problems in Hurstville area, drinking to excess and bashing, leader keep people informed, ray Had ley encourages fear for the elderly, home invasion hand bag and car theft.

Lack of police presence (please specify where)

On the train, shopping centre, Hurstville, Kingsgrove and Beverly hills, check driveway parking, speed cameras need, streets around town centre, Isaac Street which us very busy. foot police on street.

Fear of being knocked or pushed over – where (please specify)

Walking on footpaths because of bike riders. Opposite forest rd, Hurstville station, Hurstville Westfield and Main Street, shopping centre car park, crossing over to Gannon’s park from footpath, could be anywhere. Because of 4 wheel walker.

Other (please specify):

High speed. Uneducated, loitering teenagers hanging out in groups, more gambling club and bars increase the safety risk to community (drunken people and gambling), pick pocketing incidents which experienced in busy main roads.

5 Do you consider that crime in the Hurstville Local Government Area is:

Under control (24) Not under control (4) Don’t know (17)

6 If you answered Not Under Control please explain your reasons

· People are arguing in streets, swearing and carrying on.

· The way gangs congregate on forest rd opposite monument can be daunting and make concern

· Not enough police cars driving to help elderly people be safe

· hoons speeding up and down the street especially at night

· Drug issues in the area

· Too many foreigners living on the street

· theft is a major problem

· people behaviour changed but not to the better

7 Do you have any other comments about crime and safety in the Hurstville Local Government Area?

· Increase police foot patrol especially at Lugarno and Riverwood shopping centre.(3)

· Improve the street lights along the community veg garden along Cross st

· Courts are lenient after criminals arrested

· A couple of drug busts by police

· Bag snatching and pick pocketing going unreported

· Appears to be well protected but feel unsafe walking at night

· Housing commission areas attract large groups

· There are lots of young people wondering and gathering around station at night, and more night bar and Gambling facilities are opened in Hurstville will only make the situation worse

· Occasional fast cars or bikes through the back street.

Hurstville City Council – Community Safety Committee Meeting Tuesday, 10 December 2013

CSC021-13 Crime Prevention Strategy

Report Author/s	Manager Community Services, Mr D Linden
File	12/2127
Previous Reports Referenced	No
Community Strategic Plan Pillar	Social and Cultural Development
Existing Policy?	No	New Policy Required?	No
Financial Implications	Nil

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The draft Crime Prevention Strategy is submitted for adoption.

AUTHOR RECOMMENDATION

THAT the Committee endorse the draft Crime Prevention Strategy and that it be referred to Council for adoption.

REPORT DETAIL

As previously reported to the Committee, work on the preparation of the Hurstville Crime Prevention Strategy had been progressing and a copy of the draft Strategy (attached) was recently distributed to the committee members.

Feedback/comments are sought from the Committee with a view to Committee endorsing the Strategy either at this meeting or the meeting in February and then submitting it to the Council for formal adoption and then for submission to the NSW Department of Attorney General and Justice.

APPENDICES

Appendix View1

Draft Crime Prevention Strategy

1.0 Introduction

Hurstville City Council has a commitment to maintaining a safe environment for its residents and visitors and this is reflected in Council’s Community Vision contained in the Hurstville Community Strategic Plan 2021: “An evolving City which promotes a sustainable and safe community that connects people and places and celebrates diversity.”

A key issue to be addressed under the Social and Cultural Development Pillar in the Community Strategic Plan is a reduction in crime and anti-social behaviour and the Council’s Community Safety Committee plays a lead role in achieving this objective.

For over 12 years the Community Safety Committee has been active in identifying and responding to community safety issues through the development and implementation of appropriate strategies.

In 2003 the Committee developed the first Hurstville Community Safety and Crime Prevention Plan which contained some 20 strategies and actions and following adoption by Council and endorsement by the then NSW Attorney General’s Department as a Safer Community Compact undertook the implementation of those strategies in part with financial assistance from the Attorney General’s Department.

Over the intervening years the majority of these strategies have been implemented either in full or in part.

In addition the Committee has undertaken the following activities:

· A series of Community Safety Audits in town centres and other areas in response to complaints from the community.

· Conducted street lighting audits

· Staged Community Safety Expos

· Held Community Safety Forums for the general community as well as for seniors and the Chinese speaking community.

· Produced information brochures on Home and Personal Safety

· Reviewed and made recommendations on Alcohol Free Zones

During 2012-13 the Community Safety Committee undertook a review of the local crime statistics with police from the former Hurstville Local Area Command (LAC) with a view to developing a new Crime Prevention Plan.

2.0 Developing a Crime Prevention Plan

Under the revised Guidelines for Developing a Crime Prevention Strategy issued by the Department of Attorney General and Justice it is intended that a Crime Prevention Plan should be more specific in nature and focus on one or two local crime priorities with an appropriate Action Plan aimed at reducing the incidence of the identified crime/s.

Under the provisions of the Children (Protection and Parental Responsibility) Act 1997 Councils are identified as the lead agency in crime prevention planning in NSW and are supported in this role by the Department of Attorney General and Justice during the preparation stage through the provision of on-line resources and with financial assistance during implementation.

The Plan firstly needs to provide an analysis of the types of crime that are prevalent in the local government area and the incidence of those crimes through the development of a Crime Profile from which the priority areas can then be determined.

An Action Plan is then prepared which outlines the activities to be undertaken in an endeavour to reduce the occurrence of the targeted crime.

Finally the outcomes need to be evaluated to determine the effectiveness of the Strategy in achieving the stated objectives.

Once the Plan is adopted by Council and endorsed by the Department of Attorney General and Justice Council may be eligible to apply to the Department for grant funding to assist with implementation.

2.1 Local Crime Priorities

From the review of the local crime statistics by the Community Safety Committee with police from the former Hurstville Local Area Command it was determined that the crime category of Steal from Motor Vehicle would be the primary focus of the Crime Prevention Plan.

Although the trend in this particular crime category over the past five years has been stable the number of incidents per year during that time has remained relatively high (averaging 476 per year during 2008-2012).

Similarly the Local Government Area (LGA) Ranking in this crime category has remained reasonably constant around the middle of the rankings of the 140 Councils with a rank of 71 in 2012. This ranking however means that the Hurstville LGA has the second highest incident rate in this category of the four Councils within the St George/ Sutherland area.

A similar situation exists in regard to the category of motor vehicle theft. While the actual number of reported incidents was lower than those of steal from motor vehicle offences the resultant ranking of 58 in 2012 meant that the Hurstville LGA again had the second highest rate of the four St George/ Sutherland Councils.

Because of the similarities in the way that these two categories are approached in regard to crime prevention strategies they will be considered together as part of this Plan.

Community Safety Expo – Westfield Hurstville

2.2 Crime Profile

Steal from Motor Vehicle

According to the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOCSAR) the trend in the number of reported incidents of steal from motor vehicles has remained steady in recent years although as previously reported the number of incidents are relatively high.

The most recent crime data from the BOCSAR for the period from April 2012 to May 2013 shows that there were 485 reported incidents per 100,000 population for the Hurstville LGA compared to 632.3 incidents per 100,000 population across New South Wales.

Ashfield Council, being a Council with a similar socio-economic profile to Hurstville under the Australian Bureau of Census Socio-Economic Indexes for Areas (SEIFA), by comparison, recorded 395 incidents per 100,000 population for the same period.

Willoughby Council, being a Council with a similar population to Hurstville, recorded 322.8 incidents per 100,000 population (refer Figure 1).

Figure 1: Total number of Steal from Motor Vehicle and Motor Vehicle Theft incidents per 100,000 population - April 2012 – May 2013

A further analysis of the steal from motor vehicle incidents for the Hurstville LGA was undertaken to obtain an understanding of where these crimes were occurring.

From information contained on the BOCSAR site and the intelligence provided by the former Hurstville LAC the highest number of incidents occur on the street and during the weekdays. The hotspot areas are in the proximity of the Hurstville CBD and around the Beverly Hills railway station.

To a lesser extent the incidents occur within public car parks with the exception being the Beverly Hills railway station commuter car park.

Figure 2 shows the number of incidents by location ie street or car park and also the number of incidents occurring on weekdays or weekends and compares them to the NSW incident rate.

Figure 2 Number of Steal from Motor Vehicle incidents per 100,000 population by location and peak periods – April 2012 – May 2013

The intelligence provided by the former Hurstville LAC identifies four of the ten hotspot street locations as being within a 500 metre radius of the Hurstville CBD as well as the car park of the Westfield shopping centre located in the CBD.

It follows that the Hurstville CBD would feature as the number one hotspot given that it is the central hub of the LGA for business, medical, entertainment and shopping facilities as well as being the location of a public transport interchange node.

The unavailability of commuter parking results in all day parking occurring in streets on the periphery of the CBD which are unrestricted.

The Hurstville CBD contains the Westfield Shopping Centre which has over 3,000 car parking spaces accommodating short term and all day parking and is a target for would-be thieves.

The former Hurstville LAC estimated that around 15% of the items stolen from motor vehicles are number plates with the remainder being other items stolen from within the vehicle.

The BOCSAR data indicates for Hurstville LGA that juveniles have a higher profile than adults as offenders in steal from motor vehicle offences at more than double the adult rate and this is consistent with the rate across NSW which is considerably higher.

Motor Vehicle Theft

The crime data from the BOCSAR site for April 2012 through to May 2013 indicates that there were 212.8 incidents of motor vehicle theft per 100,000 population in the Hurstville LGA which is slightly less that the NSW rate of 239.6 per 100,000 population.

As with the Steal from Motor Vehicle offences comparisons were made with Ashfield and Willoughby Councils for Motor Vehicle Theft incidents and the results are shown in Figure 1. Ashfield Council’s rate was 196 per 100,000 population while Willoughby’s was 81.4 per 100,000 population.

A further breakdown of the figures are shown in Figure 3 which in a similar fashion to the Steal from Motor Vehicle incidents indicate the location and peak periods when these offences occurred.

In mirroring similar outcomes to those with the Steal from Motor Vehicles incidents the statistics indicate that the highest incidents of Motor Vehicle Theft occurred on the street and during weekdays with the main hotspot being the Hurstville CBD no doubt due to the same contributing factors previously mentioned.

In a reversal of the situation in relation to Steal from Motor Vehicle offences the BOCSAR data shows that adult offenders are far more prominent in Hurstville LGA than juvenile offenders in the Motor Vehicle Theft category which is not consistent with the NSW rate where juvenile offenders are four times the rate of adult offenders.

Figure 3 Number of Motor Vehicle Theft incidents per 100,000 population by location and peak period – April 2012 – May 2013

Offence

Hot Spots

Priority Times

Offenders

Steal From Motor Vehicle

Street 48%

Car Park 21%

Other 31%

Locations:

Hurstville CBD

Beverly Hills CBD

Street

Weekday 61%

Weekend 39%

Car Park

Weekday 52%

Weekend 48%

Juveniles

Motor Vehicle Theft

Street 55%

Car Park 20%

Other 25%

Locations:

Hurstville CBD

Street

Weekday 68%

Weekend 32%

Car Park

Weekday 83%

Weekend 17%

Adults

The majority of offences in both categories occur on the streets surrounding the main shopping centres during weekdays.

2.3 Situational Analysis

The identified hotspots where the majority of the offences related to steal from motor vehicle and motor vehicle theft are occurring are the streets within and around several of the main shopping centres in the LGA.

The streets within these catchment areas have a combination of restricted and unrestricted parking spaces with the majority being unrestricted. This provides all day parking opportunities for commuters and residents alike. There are few off-street car parks (except for Westfield) and most of these are time restricted.

Anecdotal evidence and advice from NRMA Insurance Ltd indicates that the items being stolen from vehicles consist of portable items such as mobile phones, MP3 players, GPS units, sunglasses and laptops/ipads etc. which are left visible in the vehicles.

Carelessness on the part of the vehicle occupants is considered to be a major contributing factor in the occurrence of these offences.

The NRMA also advises that items such as tyres and wheels as well as other parts of the vehicle are being stolen.

It follows therefore that a key situational crime prevention technique to be deployed in an effort to reduce these offences will be one of community education and awareness in order to reduce the rewards for potential offenders. By raising community awareness it is expected that the opportunity presented to offenders by visible goods in the vehicles will be removed or at least reduced.

The target hardening technique will also be implemented in order to reduce the number of thefts of registration plates through the distribution of one way screws.

Owners of older vehicles will be encouraged, through publicity campaigns, to install engine immobilisers to increase the effort of potential offenders intending to target their vehicles.

It is anticipated that Environmental Design aspects to be deployed will include sign posting of hot spot areas and possible tree trimming to improve natural surveillance.

2.4 Stakeholders

Key stakeholders in the implementation of this Strategy include Hurstville City Council as the lead agency with the St George Local Area Command, Westfield Shopping Centre, local businesses and community members as other partners.

The former Hurstville Local Area Command now known as the St George Local Area Command provided data input and will play a key role in conducting Environmental Audits and assistance with implementation of the Action Plan. Westfield Shopping Centre security has provided anecdotal information on incidents in the Westfield car park and will assist in implementation of the Action Plan in so far as it relates to the shopping centre.

Local business will be approached as appropriate to assist with dissemination of information to their customers as a component of the education and awareness campaign.

3.0 Crime Prevention Action Plan

3.1 Steal from Motor Vehicle

Targeted Offence: Steal from Motor Vehicle

Project: Community Education and Awareness Raising Campaign combined with environmental changes to priority areas and targeting hardening.

Rationale: A media campaign through community radio and in print will reach a wide local audience quickly while signage in strategic locations will act as a constant reminder.

Lead Agency & Partners: Hurstville City Council is the lead agency with St George Police and Westfield Shopping Centre as partners as well as individual businesses.

Objective: To achieve a 10% reduction in Steal from Motor Vehicle offences over a two year period.

Expected Outcome: A sustained reduction in the number of Steal from Motor Vehicle offences.

Performance Measure: Maintaining a lower number of offences annually

ACTION	PERFORMANCE MEASURE	TIMEFRAME	MILESTONES
Undertake Environmental Audit of hot spot locations	Number of audits undertaken and number of recommendations made	One month	Audits completed and recommendations made
Implement changes arising from Audit recommendations	Number of recommendations implemented	Three months	Recommendations implemented
Undertake media campaign to raise community awareness	Number of articles and radio broadcasts and flyers distributed	Three months	Initial campaign undertaken
Undertake distribution and installation of theft resistant screws	Number of screws distributed and number of vehicles fitted	Three months	Vehicles fitted with theft resistant screws

3.2 Motor Vehicle Theft

Targeted Offence: Motor Vehicle Theft

Project: Community Education and Awareness Campaign aimed at reminding drivers to secure vehicles and where possible to install engine immobilisers in older model vehicles.

Rationale: Target hardening by properly securing vehicles and installation of immobilisers should result in an increase in effort by would be offenders and increase the risks of being caught which may have a deterrent effect.

Lead Agency & Partners: Hurstville City Council is the lead agency with St George Police and Westfield Shopping Centre as partners as well as individual businesses.

Objective: To achieve a 10% reduction in Motor Vehicle Theft offences over a two year period.

Expected Outcome: A sustained reduction in the number of Motor Vehicle Theft offences.

Performance Measure: Maintaining a lower number of offences annually

ACTION	PERFORMANCE MEASURE	TIMEFRAME	MILESTONES
Undertake Environmental Audit of hot spot locations	Number of audits undertaken and number of recommendations made	One month	Audits completed and recommendations made
Implement changes arising from Audit recommendations	Number of recommendations implemented	Three months	Recommendations implemented
Undertake media campaign to raise community awareness	Number of articles and radio broadcasts and flyers distributed	Three months	Initial campaign undertaken
Seek funding to assist with installation of car immobilisers	Funding obtained and number of vehicles fitted with immobilisers	Six - nine months	Vehicles fitted with immobilisers