THURROCK urban communities and towns have been bypassed in a new initiative by Essex Police and the county's Fire and Crime Commissioner Roger Hirst who are to spend £1.1 million on high-visibility patrols and targeted intervention to tackle anti-social behaviour.

Reports of crime and anti-social behaviour in areas like Tilbury, Ockendon, Grays, Stanford-le-Hope and Corringham have become increasingly frequent pieces reported on local social media and in the press, but none of those town are getting any additional attention.

Only Lakeside, including Chafford Hundred station, gets a piece of the action while Clacton, Colchester, Chelmsford, Brentwood and Basildon across the wider county have been identified as anti-social behaviour hotspots.

Under the new initiative around 30,000 hours of officer and partner patrols will be undertaken over nine months across the selected areas, including co-ordinated focused nights of action to target persistent behaviour.

The funding is provided from central government as part of its anti-social behaviour strategy and is designed to deliver high visibility patrols, public engagement, targeted youth outreach and early intervention.

DCC Andy Prophet on patrol with PC Liam MacDonald.

Announcing the action plan, Essex police says anti-social behaviour has fallen in Essex by more than 60% since 2016 but there were still 18,771 ASB offences recorded in the year to the end of May 2023.

Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Roger Hirst, said: "It is unacceptable that people have to suffer from anti-social behaviour in their communities. By tackling these issues early, we can stamp out this behaviour and make it very clear this is not acceptable and that there will be consequences.

"By working together with councils, partners and communities we have been able to identify and target offenders, reduce the risk of incidents by improving the physical layout of spaces and work with schools and community groups to provide alternative activities for young people.

"The investment and our coordinated approach will help drive down anti-social behaviour even further."

The eleven hotspots, listed below, have been identified using the last five years of recorded anti-social behaviour incidents, feedback from the public and from partners in Community Safety Partnerships.

Each area is tightly defined and will benefit from extra police visibility patrols, council and partner patrols and robust enforcement of anti-social behaviour as well as engagement with local businesses and communities.

• Tendring (Clacton)
• Colchester (Cowdray Avenue)
• Colchester (Greenstead)
• Chelmsford (Moulsham Street)
• Brentwood (Railway Square)
• Harlow (Stow Shopping Centre)
• Epping Forest (Debden)
• Thurrock (Lakeside including Chafford Hundred Station)
• Basildon (Elm Green)
• Southend (Maple Square)
• Southend (Southchurch Road)

The teams will be able to tackle issues such as littering, graffiti, fly-tipping, street drinking, and noise nuisance by issuing fixed penalty notices as well as verbal and written warnings.

Police will be introducing extra patrols.

Essex Deputy Chief Constable Andy Prophet, said: "Anti-social behaviour ruins lives and damages communities. It is not a 'low-level' offence and it should not be tolerated. Everyone has the right to live free from intimidation and harassment.

"The significant reduction in anti-social behaviour offences across Essex shows the work we are doing, alongside our partners, is having an impact.

"This additional investment is fantastic and will allow us to do even more work where the need is greatest – our hotspot areas.

"I ask the public to continue to report incidents of ASB. If we don't know about it, we can't work to tackle it. Policing is one part of the solution so we will continue to work with local authorities and other agencies to combat both ASB and the underlying causes."

Phillipa Brent-Isherwood, Chair of Safer Essex, the Countywide Community Safety Strategy Group, said: "Anti-social behaviour is a blight on our communities, and is one of the crime types that has the most impact on victims.

"By working together through Community Safety Partnerships we can use our local knowledge and experience to tackle offenders, reduce the incidents of ASB and give everybody safer communities."