As one of the officers that cover the Westend and Hazlehead area, as part of the community policing team, I am delighted to be able to engage with our local communities using this column and want to share some of the work that has been done and is ongoing within Aberdeen.
Not only do we have officers on shift 24/7, responding to ongoing incidents from missing persons to reports of disturbances, dealing with road traffic offences, or reports of drug dealing, we are often the first port of call where someone is vulnerable or in need of help.
In addition, we continue to build on our existing strong partnerships with local businesses and groups, not least with the opening of the Hub at Tesco on Rousay Drive.
‘Officers will and do carry out speed checks and patrols’
After listening to the concerns of our young people – including some who were causing issues around anti-social behaviour – we realised that they wanted somewhere to gather safely, hang about with friends or play some games.
Gaining this insight would not have been possible without the young people engaging firstly, and secondly our partners from Tesco, Dennis Law Legacy Trust, AFC Community Trust and Aberdeen City Council’s team of youth workers amongst others.
This is something others across the country are looking at, to find places for our young people to ‘hang out’ safely, while building trust, aiming to improve the opportunities of those involved and hopefully steering them away from potential anti-social behaviour and/or crime.
‘I am very proud of the efforts of all the officers and staff ‘
We are also delighted to be working closely with our friends at Camphill School, Aberdeen, where we have donated pedal cycles from our lost and found department to help the students gain skills and confidence as they fix these cycles for re-use.
Officers from the community policing team continue to speak with our local schools, most notably around road safety and online safety. We realise the importance of working with education to support our young people on how to stay safe both on the road and online.
On the topic of road safety, one of the biggest complaints I receive from members of the public is regarding inappropriate speeds and parking around some of our local schools.
I’d like to take this opportunity to encourage those who drop off or collect children from school to do so considerately and safely at all times.
Officers will and do carry out speed checks and patrols and you risk a fine and/or points on your licence if caught committing offences.
I am very proud of the efforts of all the officers and staff in our community policing team. They do their very best for each of us in the Westend and Hazlehead area, day in, day out, often putting their own safety at risk to protect the members of the public we serve.
Most importantly though, and it is fundamental to policing everywhere, is that we ‘police with the consent’ of you, the public. So thank you to each of you who take the time to live lawfully, peacefully and respectfully of others.
