Hello

This week heralded new legislation relevant to policing as set out by the Government through His Majesty the King’s speech.

There is much work to be done but I am pleased to say that, in Sussex, we are already taking great strides to tackle and improve many of the areas set out within the speech.

For example: through our dedicated Business Crime team we are protecting local businesses and retailers; my Immediate Justice Taskforce is working with other diversionary programmes to tackle anti-social behaviour in our communities, giving residents reassurance that offenders will make amends for any harms caused; our Violence Reduction Partnership have undertaken substantial work to clear knives off our streets; and I have now been working for over a decade to tackle violence against women and girls. You can find out more about all of the above on my website.

I await the finer details of the new Government’s promise to recruit more police officers and PCSOs so I can better understand what this will mean for Sussex. Over recent years I have worked hard with our Chief Constable to increase officer numbers and I am grateful to Sussex residents for their ongoing support through local council tax contributions that has helped us to achieve this.

A core responsibility I have as Police & Crime Commissioner is to hold Sussex Police to account for performance and to work with Chief Constable Shiner to improve the policing service you receive. Today, I held my monthly Performance and Accountability Meeting where I raised the issue of unauthorised encampments and the Police Federation’s Pay and Morale Survey, amongst other topic areas. You can watch this online through the archive.

Are you interested in a career in policing?

Sussex Police are hosting a free recruitment event in Queens Square, Crawley this Saturday 20 July between 10am - 3pm and I encourage anyone interested in a career within policing to attend.

At the event, there will be a number of stalls where you can meet Call Handlers, Police Officers, PCSOs, Detectives, the Forensics team and many more.

Existing police officers and staff will be able to provide an insight into what it’s like to work in policing, answering any questions you might have in order to find out more about a potential new career.

If you or someone you know would like to see current vacancies, please visit the Sussex Police website.

Katy Bourne OBE

Sussex Police & Crime Commissioner