Minutes:
Burglary Dwellings – There has been a considerable reduction from the start of the year where there were 38 reports between January and March, and recently there have been 2 reports in April, 2 in May, and 1 in June. Additional Officers were deployed to patrol Oadby and also 4 persons were arrested, which contributed to the reduction in burglaries.
Burglary Other Than Dwelling – There were 9 reports (April – 0, May – 4, June – 5) where 7 of these reports were businesses broken into along The Parade, London Rd, and Stoughton Rd. A person has been arrested and investigations currently ongoing. Currently there have been no further reports since the arrest of the suspect.
Theft of Motor Vehicle – 5 reports (April – 1, May – 3, June – 1) where 4 reports have been ‘keyless’ vehicles thefts where device used to obtain signal and take the vehicles. Investigations ongoing and arrest of a suspect linked to similar offences across Leicestershire.
Anti Social Behaviour –
17 reports in April, where the main locations were :-
The Parade – 6 reports of youths climbing on roofs of businesses and causing nuisance > Youths identified from CCTV by Schools and details obtained. Youths visited and parents informed.
Brocks Hill country Park – 4 reports of persons riding motorbikes at the location > Officers conducted patrols, unfortunately unable to locate / identify perpetrators.
Kenilworth Dr – 3 reports of Persons using / dealing drugs > Ongoing patrols at location to identify youths and working with the Council.
16 reports in May, where the main location were :-
Beaumont St – 5 reports of males gathering in vehicles using/dealing drugs > Officers attended and identified males involved, discussed reported incidents and Vehicle removed; No further reports.
Brocks Hill country Park – 3 reports of persons riding motorbikes at the location > Officers conducted patrols, unfortunately unable to locate / identify perpetrators.
Kenilworth Dr – 3 reports of Persons using / dealing drugs > Ongoing patrols at location to identify youths and working with the Council.
6 reports in June, main locations was Kenilworth Dr – 3 reports of Persons using / dealing drugs > Ongoing patrols at location to identify youths and working with the Council.
Theft from Stores – 15 reports (April – 4, May – 6, June – 5) > Suspects were identified for 3 of the 15 reports.
Drugs – 10 reports where officers have proactively patrolled identified problem locations, stopped and searched persons and/or vehicles and found drugs.
Incident of Note – 2 reports in Oadby (additional reports in other areas) of elderly victims of courier fraud. Victims would get a cold call where person stating they are a Police Officer and identify a Police Force. Person would state they are investigating bank related incidents and either ask for bank details or ask victim to collect money (£5000 average) from bank and someone will attend their home to discuss and collect monies. All reports are currently under investigation.
eScooters – Widely used, and was raised some time ago regarding the use of eScooters illegally in the public. M Smith provided a short update from the Community Safety Partnership and their planned events with the Police.
Parking and Motor Vehicle Concerns in Oadby, especially around the Parade, and on the corner of roads with large expanses of space where vehicles can block line of sight. County Council matter as it is a Highways concern; has been raised on many occasions with them by OWBC, including parking outside of schools. LCC operate an ANPR vehicle which has seen operation outside schools locally. Bollards were suggested by residents as a measure to stop the problem parking. Cllr. Haq has noted an increase in problem parking around the new Bru café on the Parade. Conversations are taking place to see if OWBC can be granted powers to enforce parking on the highway. Greggs also have delivery lorries pull on the pavement.
Sports Bar, London Road – “constant invasion of vehicles parked on double yellows, corners too”. Also noted problems around speeding vehicles. County Council approached regarding having wardens patrol the area during the problem times in the evening, but the County Council refused to pay the overtime for officers at this time. Emergency vehicles are also potentially being blocked by problem parking on some of the smaller side streets. Cllr. Gamble will email Leicestershire County Council to follow this up, and provide the response to the Forum.
“What is the County Council’s obligation around dangerous / illegal parking?” – It is their statutory obligation, but their response, or lack of, is justified by accident and injury data in locations reported to them.
Give Way signs have been requested at the Broadway / Fairway area to reduce accidents at this location; the County Council has refused to purchase and install these signs due to cost. Residents asked if they could pay for the signs themselves but this was refused. Cllr. Joshi has confirmed that LCC will now be installing the signs, as confirmed by Ozzy O’Shea at LCC. Repainting of road markings will also be taking place, and the feathering of growth at the bottom of the trees that line the road will also be looked at due to them impacting on line of sight.
“What can residents do to force action from Leicestershire County Council to address the problem parking in the Borough?” – A petition was suggested by Cllr. Gamble which can be presented to Ozzy O’Shea. The parking on the Moorwoods would definitely cause issues to emergency vehicle access as some cars are already affected. A petition must have a clear, and exact, request of Leicestershire County Council with a desired outcome, i.e. “please enforce the existing road markings”.
A conversation is required with LFRS and town planners regarding the width of roads, and the provision for emergency vehicle access.
Parking on pavements is not illegal outside of the London metropolitan area.