Response to Police and Crime Plan 2025-2029
Who we are
Kingston First is a business improvement district (BID) which operates within Kingston town centre. Set up in accordance with the Local Government Act 2003, we are a not-for-prof company, limited by guarantee and principally funded by a levy from businesses and organisations from within a specific boundary. This levy is used to provide additional projects and services to those provided by Kingston Council and other public agencies.
Kingston First was established 20 years ago as the first BID set up in the country a following a successful renewal ballot in June 2024, the company started its fifth five- term on 1 January 2025. As set out in the Renewal Proposal 2025-29, our work will focus on our key themes: –
- Investing in a safe and welcoming town centre
- Promoting and celebrating Kingston as a unique destination
- Delivering a better connected Kingston town centre
- Supporting local businesses by saving them time and money
Feedback on Police and Crime Plan 2025-2029
We are highly supportive of the Mayor of London’s commitment to make London a safer place for everyone and welcome the opportunity to provide comments on the Police and Crime Plan for 2025-2029. We have outlined below our key feedback on the plan which is representative of our experiences and that of our members, over 700 businesses and organisations spanning retail, leisure, hospitality, office and commercial sectors.
Our specific high level feedback is as follow
- Since the pandemic members have highlighted concerns regarding the increase in shoplifting and organised crime activities. In our member survey of 2023, 42% stated they were concerned about ‘Safety and security in the town centre’, specifically violent crime, shoplifting, homelessness, break ins.
- Employees are increasingly sharing with us that they are feeling unsafe and more vulnerable in their places of work. Anti-social behaviour is increasingly mentioned by members and we have seen an increase in graffiti and damage within the town centre.
- We have introduced Police drop-ins providing an opportunity for the Police to strengthen relations with the business community and better understand their concerns. However, there is a strong desire from our members for greater visibility of the Police in the town centre.
- We receive feedback frequently from our members about a lack of trust and confidence in the Police with many sharing the belief that no action/follow-up will taken if they report a crime or anti-social behaviour.
- We strongly encourage that appropriate resources and policing teams are deployed in high footfall and highly concentrated commercial areas to support and tackle crime for all that use those areas: business owners, staff, students, visitors and customer
We welcome the Mayor of London’s Police and Crime Plan focus on tackling crime, enhancing public safety through better resources, training and recruitment and building trust between the police and communities. While we recognise this is a complex area and time is needed to recruit and train new police officers, we would encourage the Mayor of London to w closely with individual London boroughs, their communities and agencies to identify and address their specific concerns and priorities and to set out a clear action plan with timelines to increase transparency and accountability within the Police.
Kingston First are committed to creating a safe and welcoming town centre for everyone to enjoy and the priority within the Plan to build relationships with neighbourhoods is paramount to achieving this. We are available to share our experiences with the Mayor of London to help ensure the Police and Crime plan is developed and delivered successfully.
Kirsten Henly
Chief Executive, Kingston First
Comments are closed.