CHANGE is coming. Neighbourhood policing is being rebuilt.
For families across Solihull that change is long overdue.
This week has seen the announcement of the biggest overhaul of policing in over two centuries. These reforms will speed up police responses and bring visible neighbourhood policing back to our streets.
Solihull residents know that this is exactly the policing that we need locally.
Under the last Conservative government, street crime surged, with shoplifting up by around 70 per cent and theft from the person rising by around 60 per cent while neighbourhood policing collapsed – nationwide we lost 18,000 neighbourhood officers and PCSOs in a decade.
When I surveyed residents across Solihull North about what matters most in their neighbourhood, one message came through loud and clear: people want to feel safe, and they want to see policing they can rely on. The absence of visible policing was the single biggest concern raised, closely followed by the knock-on effects that come with it – speeding on our roads and the rise of everyday crime, from shoplifting and knife crime to burglaries and antisocial behaviour.
Residents have told me again and again about slow response times, antisocial behaviour going unchecked and the sense that no one is watching out for their street anymore.
Labour is turning that around.
We’re guaranteeing faster police responses. Serious incidents will be attended within 15 minutes in urban areas and 999 calls answered within 10 seconds. These are firm national standards and forces that fall short will be put right.
Every council ward in Solihull will have named, contactable neighbourhood officers with to respond to local concerns within 72 hours. And for the first time, clear national performance standards will be published so people can see whether their local force is improving.
And that excessive paperwork and bureaucracy that keeps officers stuck behind desks? It’s going. That means more police back on our streets, building relationships, preventing crime before it happens. It means officers who know our estates and our high streets. It means criminals caught and communities safer.
And the new National Police Service we’re setting up to tackle terrorism, large-scale fraud and online abuse will free up local West Midlands officers to focus on the crimes that blight daily life: shoplifting, street theft, antisocial behaviour and neighbourhood crime.
After years of being taken for granted, our area is finally seeing real, practical investment in public safety – raising standards for police who are properly equipped, properly supported and properly resourced to cut crime and help people feel safe again where they live.
People understand what works. A visible police presence deters opportunistic crime, reassures residents, and sends a powerful signal that communities like ours are being heard and that Solihull is receiving the investment it needs to be safe, strong and able to thrive.
I’m excited about what lies ahead for our community. Solihull deserves nothing less than excellent policing – and now, at last, that’s exactly what we’re getting.
