Despite many government initiatives, the present system of crime control is just not good enough. We live in an increasingly surveillance-based society and yet are more fearful than ever. The police are given more and more powers, but seem even more distant from the communities they serve.

The poorest half of the UK population owns just 6% of the nation's wealth. Members of black and ethnic minority communities are over-represented as victims of crime and more likely to be arrested and sent to prison than white people.

We believe we need to deal with the social causes of crime. Policies on crime should go together with those on education, social care, health, economics and housing. Some who commit offences need supervision. But we want a society to prevent crime, not just punish it; where offenders make reparation to the victims and the police are fully accountable to the people

In Sheffield

Around one third of Sheffield’s 28 wards are within the most deprived 10% in England and two wards are within the least deprived 5%. This makes Sheffield one of the most unequal cities in the country. The city still has a much higher burglary rate than the national average.

Over 100 people in South Yorkshire have been served with Anti-social behaviour orders -ASBOs. ASBOs have not been proved to work and do nothing to address the underlying causes of anti-social behaviour. We want to see properly funded community and youth services and support for people with mental health, drug and alcohol or other social problems. In places like the city centre, ‘24 hour’ licensing and the growth of bars and city centre apartments has led to noise nuisance. As part of a response, the Council has recently imposed an alcohol exclusion zone across the city centre; however this is likely to force street drinkers to places where they will have no support.

What we have done so far:

• Actively supported the provision of better youth/sports facilities (Mount Pleasant, Broomhall and Meersbrook)
• Taken on a high volume of casework around noise nuisance and litter, particularly in Central Ward.
• Liaised with the two Universities about the anti-social behaviour of particular students.
• Formed links with black and ethnic minority communities and taken on individual casework

As City Councillors, we will:

• Continue to support the provision of better youth/sports facilities.
• Raise noise nuisance issues with the Council as part of a campaign to improve city centre living.
• Work on the alcohol exclusion zone issue to develop alternatives such as a ‘wet garden’ tolerance zone for street drinkers.
• Support the appointment and deployment of more community support officers (CSOs) to ensure a greater police presence on foot in areas of high crime and neighbourhood nuisance.
• Encourage the appointment of more Police Officers, CSOs and JPs from black and ethnic minorities.
• Support groups doing preventive work e.g. Neighbourhood Watch, support for victims of domestic violence and racial harassment, out of school activities, citizenship education initiatives, and mediation.
• Encourage more people to become involved in voluntary and community work, especially those at risk of social exclusion.