Plans to invest more than £1m into tackling anti-social behaviour in two of South Bristol's crime hotspots have been announced. Bristol City Council has submitted a bid for around £1.1m to the Home Office, which would be used to reduce offending in areas of Hartcliffe and Bedminster through measures such as CCTV and improved lighting.
Police and the council are hoping to tackle issues of sexual violence against women and girls, as well as anti-social behaviour (ASB) including vandalism, verbal abuse and drug abuse. If the bid is successful,, the money would be targeted in the area around Millmead House, Hayley House and Middleford House in Hartcliffe.
The funding would also be focused on areas of Bedminster around East Street, Dame Emily Park, Lucky Lane and Catherine Mead Street. According to a document submitted with the application, these areas have some of the highest cases of antisocial behaviour in the city, and the issue is "escalating rapidly" in South Bristol.
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And it adds that both areas "experience similar root causes for their problems, such as, lack of community cohesion, hostile surroundings needing improvement, and young and/or vulnerable people from disadvantaged backgrounds being involved in ASB."
The bid says that the three tower blocks in Hartcliffe "experience the highest levels" of anti-social behaviour in the south of the city, and there were 192 police incidents recorded in them last year. It highlights Millmead and Hayley tower blocks in particular as experiencing problems, claiming that the stairwells in the flat are "used for defecation/urination and drug use".
And the document says that in Bedminster, there is an "open drugs market" around Dame Emily Park and the surrounding streets up to Lucky Lane. It says this leads to drug and alcohol abuse around the Bedminster ASDA, which "often leads to shop theft, street begging, criminal damage and other (antisocial behaviour), such as harassment and intimidation."
The bid for the money also aims to address issues of violence against women and girls. The document says that there is a feeling of "vulnerability" in the community at night and in the winter months because of "reduced lighting along secluded footpaths".
If the bid is successful, part of the funding would be used to set up around 15 CCTV cameras and install or improve 70 lights in order to reduce crime. The money will also be invested into community-based work to help reduce the "general distrust of authority" in crime hotspots, and the money would also be used in substance misuse services.
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