Basingstoke & Dean Borough Council
Councillors:
54
Wards:
18
Committees:
22
Meetings (2025):
71
Meetings (2024):
72
Meeting
Crime and Disorder Joint Scrutiny Committee - Basingstoke & Dean
Meeting Times
Scheduled Time
Start:
Thursday, 19th June 2025
2:30 PM
Thursday, 19th June 2025
2:30 PM
End:
Thursday, 19th June 2025
5:00 PM
Thursday, 19th June 2025
5:00 PM
Meeting Status
Status:
Confirmed
Confirmed
Date:
19 Jun 2025
19 Jun 2025
Location:
Council Chamber - Deanes
Council Chamber - Deanes
Webcast:
Available
Available
Meeting Attendees
Committee Member
Vice-Chair of the Licensing Committee
Committee Member
Deputy Mayor and Chair of the Resident Services Committee
Committee Member
Leader of the Conservative Group
Guest
Cabinet Member for Communities, Partnerships and Inclusion
Agenda
1
Appointment of Chair
To appoint a Chair of the Crime and Disorder Joint Scrutiny Committee for the 2025/26 municipal year.
Minutes
Councillor J Tustain was elected as Chair for the 2025/26 municipal year.
The meeting adjourned at 2.35pm and reconvened at 2.51pm.
The meeting adjourned at 2.35pm and reconvened at 2.51pm.
2
Apologies for absence and substitutions
Minutes
Apologies were received from Councillors M Tennant and N Martin (Rushmoor BC) and Councillor S Forster (Hart DC).
Councillor P Miller was replaced by Councillor S Minas-Bound (Basingstoke and Deane BC).
Councillor P Miller was replaced by Councillor S Minas-Bound (Basingstoke and Deane BC).
3
Declarations of interest
Minutes
There were no declarations of interest.
4
Minutes of the meeting held on 9 September 2024
The Chair will move that the minutes of the meeting be signed as a correct record. The only part of the minutes that can be discussed is their accuracy.
Attachments:
- Document Minutes of the meeting held on 9 September 2024 10 Jun 2025
Minutes
The minutes of the meeting held on 9 September 2024 were confirmed as a correct record.
5
Performance Review of the Safer North Hampshire Strategic Community Safety Partnership
This report provides an overview of the performance of the Strategic Safer North Hampshire CSP. It is presented for consideration by the Crime and Disorder Joint Scrutiny Committee, comprising members from Basingstoke & Deane Borough Council (BDBC), Hart District Council (HDC) and Rushmoor Borough Council (RBC), which was set up in accordance with section 19 of the Police and Justice Act 2006.
Attachments:
- Document Report 10 Jun 2025
- Document Appendix 1 10 Jun 2025
- Document Appendix 2 10 Jun 2025
- Document Appendix 3 10 Jun 2025
- Document Appendix 4 10 Jun 2025
Minutes
The Committee considered the report which provided an overview of the performance of the Safer North Hampshire Strategic Community Safety Partnership (CSP) during 2024/25.
The Chair of the Safer North Hampshire Strategic Community Safety Partnership presented the report, which gave an overview of crime and antisocial behaviour trends for the year 2024/25. Across Safer North Hampshire, 23,877 crimes were recorded, which decreased by 4% compared to the previous year. There were notable decreases across several crime categories which included robbery, drug offences, possession of weapon offences, and public order offences.
The Chair of the CSP also provided an overview of progress against the Crime and Disorder Annual Strategic Assessment priorities for 2024/25, which were:
Improving feelings of safety and health outcomes (in public, virtual and private spaces). Tackling serious violence. Addressing antisocial behaviour (ASB). Responding to domestic abuse. Managing town centre related crime and antisocial behaviour.
The Chair of the CSP stated that there were ongoing challenges that would impact delivery of the partnership’s work such as resourcing pressures and funding challenges due to recent changes to partner contributions concerning Domestic Homicide Reviews (DHRs). The Chair of the CSP also cited a need for the partnership to prepare for local government reform changes in consideration of reorganisation proposals.
The Committee discussed the report and made comments on the following areas:
How the Partnership worked
Sought greater understanding of how the relevant Cabinet members across the three councils worked together to provide effective leadership within the wider Community Safety Partnership to progress on work against its priorities. Stated that the report should have placed greater emphasis on how the partnership worked in practise, its successes, alongside qualitative feedback, rather than a focus on quantitative data. Highlighted challenges in promotion of the partnership’s work and cited a need for improved communication. Expressed disappointment regarding a lack of attendance from statutory and voluntary partners at the meeting. Questioned the engagement of partners at the quarterly strategic CSP meetings and requested data on their attendance to be provided at the next Joint Scrutiny Committee meeting. The District Commander for Hart and Rushmoor confirmed that the police communicated with partners frequently to address community safety issues in line with the CSP priorities. Stated that collaborative working across the partnership was valuable in identifying gaps in knowledge, alongside adaptability to work beyond its set priorities when necessary. Suggested the inclusion of a diagram in future joint scrutiny committee reports to explain the functions of the partnership.
Achievements of the partnership
Questioned if any changes had occurred within the partnership over the past year. The Safer Communities Manager for Basingstoke referred to partnership working events recently introduced at Basingstoke involving local police, the council’s community safety officers and housing associations. The councils had applied for and received grant funding as part of the Home Office Safer Streets funding scheme, with various initiatives carried out across the partnership area.
Improving feelings of Safety
Highlighted street lighting as a frequent area of concern affecting residents feeling of safety. It was acknowledged that this was the responsibility of Hampshire County Council, although the councils and police could discuss areas of concern with the County Council. The local impact of the government’s early release scheme on victims of crime was raised. The District Commander for Hart and Rushmoor acknowledged that while there could be an impact, the police had to focus on emerging issues daily, and work with the probation service where necessary. Highlighted that there needed to be improved public awareness of police visibility such as utilising mapping tools and social media.
Responding to Domestic Abuse
Referred to joint events with partners focused on contributions to combating domestic abuse. It was noted that each council held domestic abuse forums. It was stated that representatives from housing associations and the social care sector should be invited to future Joint Scrutiny Committee meetings, due to their role as important local partners.
Town Centre Crime and Antisocial Behaviour
Expressed concern regarding a rise in reported shoplifting incidents and the capacity of the police to deal with the issue. Discussed the engagement with town centre businesses regarding the DISC information sharing system. The Community Safety Officer for Hart highlighted that housing associations worked with officers at Hart as part of antisocial behaviour working groups.
Other
Commented that easier crime reporting could assist the police to target resources as necessary. The District Commander for Basingstoke emphasised the importance of reporting crime, and highlighted tools such as Crimestoppers. Reference was made to using the 101 service and the need to promote crime reporting methods. It was stated that the three councils engaged with the Local Government Association (LGA) to inform policy and strategy development. Questioned the progress of improvements to data sharing, considering local government reorganisation proposals to support closer collaboration. Officers stated that they would consult with their analysts and provide an appropriate update.
The Chair summarised the key points of discussion:
The data captured in the report was evaluated. Whether the report recognised the successes of the partnership. Wider representation in future meetings of the Joint Scrutiny Committee. Cited the need for a collaborative approach to tackle the relevant issues. It was difficult to scrutinise in the absence of several partners.
Resolved:
The Joint Overview and Scrutiny Committee reviewed the performance of the Strategic CSP in relation to the discharge of its statutory functions as defined by section 17 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998. That the comments of the committee be considered by the respective councils.
The meeting ended at 4.23 pm.
Chair
The Chair of the Safer North Hampshire Strategic Community Safety Partnership presented the report, which gave an overview of crime and antisocial behaviour trends for the year 2024/25. Across Safer North Hampshire, 23,877 crimes were recorded, which decreased by 4% compared to the previous year. There were notable decreases across several crime categories which included robbery, drug offences, possession of weapon offences, and public order offences.
The Chair of the CSP also provided an overview of progress against the Crime and Disorder Annual Strategic Assessment priorities for 2024/25, which were:
Improving feelings of safety and health outcomes (in public, virtual and private spaces). Tackling serious violence. Addressing antisocial behaviour (ASB). Responding to domestic abuse. Managing town centre related crime and antisocial behaviour.
The Chair of the CSP stated that there were ongoing challenges that would impact delivery of the partnership’s work such as resourcing pressures and funding challenges due to recent changes to partner contributions concerning Domestic Homicide Reviews (DHRs). The Chair of the CSP also cited a need for the partnership to prepare for local government reform changes in consideration of reorganisation proposals.
The Committee discussed the report and made comments on the following areas:
How the Partnership worked
Sought greater understanding of how the relevant Cabinet members across the three councils worked together to provide effective leadership within the wider Community Safety Partnership to progress on work against its priorities. Stated that the report should have placed greater emphasis on how the partnership worked in practise, its successes, alongside qualitative feedback, rather than a focus on quantitative data. Highlighted challenges in promotion of the partnership’s work and cited a need for improved communication. Expressed disappointment regarding a lack of attendance from statutory and voluntary partners at the meeting. Questioned the engagement of partners at the quarterly strategic CSP meetings and requested data on their attendance to be provided at the next Joint Scrutiny Committee meeting. The District Commander for Hart and Rushmoor confirmed that the police communicated with partners frequently to address community safety issues in line with the CSP priorities. Stated that collaborative working across the partnership was valuable in identifying gaps in knowledge, alongside adaptability to work beyond its set priorities when necessary. Suggested the inclusion of a diagram in future joint scrutiny committee reports to explain the functions of the partnership.
Achievements of the partnership
Questioned if any changes had occurred within the partnership over the past year. The Safer Communities Manager for Basingstoke referred to partnership working events recently introduced at Basingstoke involving local police, the council’s community safety officers and housing associations. The councils had applied for and received grant funding as part of the Home Office Safer Streets funding scheme, with various initiatives carried out across the partnership area.
Improving feelings of Safety
Highlighted street lighting as a frequent area of concern affecting residents feeling of safety. It was acknowledged that this was the responsibility of Hampshire County Council, although the councils and police could discuss areas of concern with the County Council. The local impact of the government’s early release scheme on victims of crime was raised. The District Commander for Hart and Rushmoor acknowledged that while there could be an impact, the police had to focus on emerging issues daily, and work with the probation service where necessary. Highlighted that there needed to be improved public awareness of police visibility such as utilising mapping tools and social media.
Responding to Domestic Abuse
Referred to joint events with partners focused on contributions to combating domestic abuse. It was noted that each council held domestic abuse forums. It was stated that representatives from housing associations and the social care sector should be invited to future Joint Scrutiny Committee meetings, due to their role as important local partners.
Town Centre Crime and Antisocial Behaviour
Expressed concern regarding a rise in reported shoplifting incidents and the capacity of the police to deal with the issue. Discussed the engagement with town centre businesses regarding the DISC information sharing system. The Community Safety Officer for Hart highlighted that housing associations worked with officers at Hart as part of antisocial behaviour working groups.
Other
Commented that easier crime reporting could assist the police to target resources as necessary. The District Commander for Basingstoke emphasised the importance of reporting crime, and highlighted tools such as Crimestoppers. Reference was made to using the 101 service and the need to promote crime reporting methods. It was stated that the three councils engaged with the Local Government Association (LGA) to inform policy and strategy development. Questioned the progress of improvements to data sharing, considering local government reorganisation proposals to support closer collaboration. Officers stated that they would consult with their analysts and provide an appropriate update.
The Chair summarised the key points of discussion:
The data captured in the report was evaluated. Whether the report recognised the successes of the partnership. Wider representation in future meetings of the Joint Scrutiny Committee. Cited the need for a collaborative approach to tackle the relevant issues. It was difficult to scrutinise in the absence of several partners.
Resolved:
The Joint Overview and Scrutiny Committee reviewed the performance of the Strategic CSP in relation to the discharge of its statutory functions as defined by section 17 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998. That the comments of the committee be considered by the respective councils.
The meeting ended at 4.23 pm.
Chair
6
Exclusion of Press and Public
To consider whether, in view of the nature of the remaining items on the agenda, any of them are likely to involve the disclosure of exempt or confidential information within the terms of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972.
7
Confidential/Exempt Items for Information
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