A STATEMENT ON RECENT PRESS ARTICLES ON CRIME AND ANTI SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR IN CAMBORNE
Cllr James Ball, Mayor of Camborne:
“While community safety and policing is not normally the responsibility of Camborne Town Council, we have been doing all we can to influence the organisations and individuals responsible for keeping the people of Camborne safe. While there is still much to do, all the work that has been done by stakeholders in response to the community’s concerns has started to make a real difference in Camborne.
Both residents and businesses have been grateful for the introduction of Street Marshall patrols, the DISC scheme (run by BID), hotspot policing and the work of a dedicated ASB officer in tackling persistent issues.
Over the 18 last months, there have been a number of articles, both in national and local newspapers about ASB and crime in Camborne, but none have balanced their reporting with the work that has been done and the positive results they have achieved and if you’re not aware of all of this work, please read on…”
STREET MARSHALLS EMPLOYED
Over the last two years, Camborne Town Council has used funding from the Home Office’s ‘Safer Streets 5’ scheme to employ Street Marshalls to patrol the town and coordinate with the police. This funding was also used to improve CCTV coverage and monitoring. It has been very successful in both reassuring the public with a visible street presence and reducing issues. Our use of Street Marshalls has been warmly welcomed by the community and both residents and local businesses have expressed their appreciation, noting that the visible patrols have made the town feel safer. This is additional police funding from the Home Office for specific targeted interventions, and it is not drawn from our council tax precept.
The Street Marshalls are SIA Security Industry Association (SIA) vetted and trained and were previously employed during Covid. They work closely with the police to report incidents, they send in alerts to Streetlink when they find homeless people and refer those with addiction issues to the local addiction charity ‘We Are With You’. Similar schemes operate nationwide and across the southwest eg Barnstaple, Plymouth, Torbay, Newton Abbot and have proved successful in reducing ASB.
NEW DEDICATED ASB CASEWORKER EMPLOYED
In 2024, Cornwall Council recruited and trained a dedicated ASB Caseworker to cover Camborne & Redruth and they have been successful in a variety of campaigns, for example the closure of properties and premises which have been a persistent source of ASB and crime and the removal of graffiti. Since Spring 2025, this ASB Caseworker is part-funded by Camborne Town Council, and is no longer split across two towns, therefore, dedicated to work for Camborne and immediate surrounding villages.
HOTSPOT POLICING & TRI SERVICE SAFETY OFFICER DEPLOYED
Hotspot policing represents a multi-agency approach to improving community safety with Camborne Town Council, Cornwall Council, the local neighbourhood policing team, Street Marshalls, Business Improvement District (BID) and Safer Cornwall all working together. Joint working between the police and Street Marshalls has improved intelligence sharing, enabling a more effective response, using targeted foot patrols to tackle antisocial behaviour and serious violence. Devon & Cornwall Police crime data was used to identify the hotspot locations and create patrol plans which have been shared with partners.
Hotspot funding has also enabled the employment of a Tri-Service Safety Officer, a role partly funded by hotspot policing. The officer works alongside the three emergency services and supports the delivery of hotspot patrols in the town centre.
Camborne, Devon & Cornwall’s Police and Crime Commissioner, Alison Hernandez secured £1 million in Home Office funding for hotspot policing, which forms part of a wider Street Focus project. Camborne is one of 13 towns and cities to benefit from this initiative and the PCC herself visited Camborne in early 2024 to hear about the impact of these actions. A further £200,000 in match funding from the Commissioner has maximised the number of partner patrols across Devon and Cornwall.
BID DISC SCHEME
Camborne’s Business Improvement District (BID) has begun rolling out a scheme known in some areas as ‘DISC’. This is a licensed, app-based tool that enables local businesses to quickly report crime and anti-social behaviour. Users are kept up to date with an instant messaging system that is data protection compliant, and reports can be escalated directly to the police.
NEIGHBOURHOOD WATCH SCHEMES EXTENDED
The Neighbourhood Watch Network have been working hard to extend the reach and number of Neighbourhood Watch schemes in the parish and they have held several events to encourage more of the community to sign up.
COMMUNITY SAFETY POP-UPS & MEETINGS
Safer Cornwall have partnered with other community safety stakeholders to hold regular pop-up events to enable the community to discuss any community safety issues and report any concerns they may have. These have been held both during weekends and during Camborne’s Produce Market in Commercial Square. The OPCC’s office have also conducted surveys to enable community feedback such as ‘The Your Safety, Your Say’ survey in 2023.
CONTEXT
While there is still much work to do on community safety, for context, the crime rate in Camborne is 27% lower than the national average (according to crimerate.co.uk) and compared to other Cornish towns, Camborne has dropped down ASB rankings e.g. In 2024, experienced lower instances of ASB than Truro, Penzance and St Austell. I hope that helps clarify all the actions that have been taken over the last 2 years by Camborne Town Council, other community safety stakeholders and partners in the area and we will continue to do all we can to listen and respond to the community’s concerns.