Youth related ASB

Dear Resident

With the lovely weather we've been experiencing of late we've seen a slight increase in the numbers of youth related ASB incidents being reported and I'd like to try and get something in place so that we can try and tackle the issue before the summer holidays get into full swing.  

We have spoken to St Augustines and they are speaking to there pupils in assembly as well as sending a message home to parents, I will spend my late turn shifts in and around Whalley patrolling the hotspot areas, we have asked our colleagues on response to also default to patrolling Whalley when not dealing with emergency incidents and I will put in a request to mounted for them to also attend if able to provide additional police patrols. The police do have dispersal powers that we have previously used in Whalley but in order for me to make use of this power it requires an inspectors authorisation and I will need to evidence the issue to my inspector to get the relevant authority which is were you come in! Please if you observe any youth related ASB can you report it ideally via 101 if in progress so that our control room can look to deploy an available patrol or online via the following link Report a Crime or Incident - Lancashire Constabulary - Report Online 

Whalley is one of the better locations in the Ribble Valley for teens as the muga is a great facility and I do not wish to police youth presence however when we've reports of bins being set on fire, excessive littering, damage, shouting swearing and abuse directed towards other members of the public it doesn't make for a community (of which the teens are also a part of) that feels safe and welcoming. As a parent none of us wish to believe that it's our child that is behaving like this and whilst they may not be directly responsible if they are in a group that are behaving like this they are indirectly responsible and part of the problem so please have a chat with your teen about where they are and what they are up to of an evening.

Many thanks

PCSO Katie Ferguson