Surveys: Have your say

CLICK HERE

Have your say on what you pay for policing

Message from Donna Jones – Police and Crime Commissioner for Hampshire and the Isle of Wight

This survey is to gather your views on whether there should be an increase in the level of council tax which you pay in support of policing, to ensure continued investment in Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary.

Inflation pressures remain higher than the government target. The biggest pressures on police budgets are police officer and staff wage increase and the cost of items such as fuel and the purchase of police cars and uniforms. These items have increased the costs of running the police force over the last 12 months.

For the last financial year, the increase in council tax funded the recruitment of 50 more police officers to keep communities safe, in addition to the 600 new officers pledged when I was elected as Police and Crime Commissioner in 2021. In total, that’s 650 extra police officers; the force’s biggest ever recruitment drive.

Increasing the number of police on your streets has always been my number one priority in my Police and Crime Plan.

To further increase police visibility, 10 more police stations will open over the next 18 months meaning there will be a police station with a public front counter in every district. As Police Commissioner, I know you want to see more officers in your communities and you want stations to be open to report crimes. I set money aside in the 2023-24 budget to achieve this.

This year, the government announced a 7% pay rise for police officers and the same for police staff. Whilst the government has provided additional funding to assist with some of the cost of the pay award, there has been no additional government support for the high inflation increases on non-pay expenditure which we must take into account.

The Chief Constable’s sharp focus on providing excellent neighbourhood policing and my commitment for all communities to have named ‘Local Bobbies’ by December 2023 is setting the force up to tackle community priorities and ensure officers are seen on your streets more than ever before. This is a trajectory we want to stay on.

How much you want to contribute to policing for the next financial year helps me ensure the force delivers the service you expect. Your views on where you want your money to go and which crimes matter to you the most is vital. That’s why it’s so important that you complete this short survey and have your say.

The survey is open for five weeks in order to hear from as many people as possible.

Contributions are based on a band D property, which means you will pay less if your property is a band A-C and more if it is a band E-H.

If you are not sure which council tax band your property is in, you can check at www.gov.uk/council-tax-bands

The survey will close at 11.59pm on Sunday 10 December 2023.

Thank you for your ongoing support and feedback.

CLICK HERE

PCC Donna Jones is inviting young people to take part in a new knife crime survey. The OPCC’s Violence Reduction Unit (VRU) for Hampshire, Southampton, Portsmouth and Isle of Wight is supporting the University of Portsmouth with a new study that is exploring people’s perceptions of knife crime and its impact, including their feelings of safety.

Tackling knife crime is a key concern for PCC Donna Jones in her Police and Crime Plan and we hope this anonymous survey will gain insight into perceptions of knife crime in Hampshire and on the Isle of Wight and how it impacts of peoples’ feelings of safety.

We are particularly interested in hearing the voices of young people, in particular teenagers and young adults between the ages of 12 to 25 years old. If you are a parent, carer or guardian, we hope that you can encourage your young person to have their voice heard, or maybe assist them to complete this survey.

Responses will assist the OPCC to understand better how to help people and communities impacted by knife crime and how to divert young people away from criminality.

https://survey.alchemer.eu/s3/90586430/VRU2023

CLICK HERE

It is important that as a resident of Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Portsmouth and Southampton you have the opportunity to talk to us about your thoughts, views and experiences on local policing, community safety and solutions to improving the life opportunities for all our residents.

Having your voice heard and seeing how you have contributed to positive change for individuals and communities is our goal. We want to provide focus groups and consultation opportunities on a range of themes and topics, all of which feed directly into the work of the Commissioner and his team.

Whether you:

• Have been a victim of a crime or know someone who has
• Want to share your thoughts on a particular issue
• Want to share your experiences on policing and community safety
• Want to help shape how we communicate with residents and share opinions on campaign materials

We’d really like to hear from you.  We ask you take the time to register your interest in being a part of our focus group and consultation opportunities. This link takes you to a registration form where you can complete your details securely and let us know the types of things you’d like to talk to us about.

Register your interest here: https://survey.alchemer.eu/s3/90468660/participant-sign-up

Responses captured through our focus groups, consultations and surveys are anonymous and cannot be used to identify you. We will share results of consultations and engagement activity with relevant partners to ensure a strengthened partnership approach to understanding the needs of the public, and the wider support needed to help keep our communities safer. 

Reports from our previous focus groups can be found on the results and reports page.