Schools and police working together to fight gang culture

Oct 16 2008 Agenda

Superintendent Tom Coughlan’s claims that head teachers in Birmingham were in denial over the number of children who are joining vicious gangs sparked a wave of criticism. Here, West Midlands Assistant Chief Constable Stuart Hyde explains how schools and police are working together to tackle the problem.

Following a recent news story in The Birmingham Post which talked about the issue of gangs within local schools, I have taken the opportunity to clarify some of the points made in the piece and highlight the excellent working relationship West Midlands Police has with our schools.

Firstly, I would like to acknowledge all the good work being done by local schools to address challenges they and their students have in tackling gang issues. Birmingham and the West Midlands is a fantastic place to grow up, go to school and learn and West Midlands Police will do all it can to help create the environment to let young people flourish.

A national policing model for schools – Safer School Partnerships – was launched in 2002, and provided a very focused approach to address the high level of crime and anti-social behaviour committed in and around schools in some areas.

Since the partnership was launched, we have introduced locally-based officers who are dedicated to working out of schools.

We have 31 officers who are dedicated to working within secondary schools across the force area, from Wolverhampton to Coventry. These officers carry out key roles in schools by helping break down barriers with young people and staff, they are also more accessible and readily available to assist and advise young people.

There are several levels of youth engagement within the West Midlands. At primary school age, Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs) will go into schools to offer support and guidance to pupils, parents and school staff. When year 6 pupils are transferring to secondary schools, a schools-based officer, school link officer or neighbourhood officer working within secondary schools, will provide an introduction and ease the path for the pupils.

Schools generally feel police support and occasional presence is beneficial and helps reduce crime as well as making the police service more approachable – these roles really help bridge the gap between young people and the police.

Alongside local schools we have launched key initiatives such as ‘Tooled Up for School’. This initiative was launched two years ago and aimed specifically at 11 to 16-year-olds and helping them to feel more safe and secure and resist the need to carry an offensive weapon. The scheme brings together speakers, teaching staff, local police, drama workshops and music, to create a sense of reality to what carrying a knife means.

This initiative has been rolled out to hundreds of West Midlands’ schools and thousands of young people. The initiative is delivered by police officers, teaching staff and youth professionals. A number of schools have erected mobile metal arches and used hand held wands to detect any pupils carrying weapons into school. This is done on an ad hoc basis and acts as a deterrent.

Our approach is to support schools wherever possible in partnership with the Local Authority, using these initiatives to engage with, and prevent children becoming involved in crime. Our programmes with schools are targeted at those who are likely to be more vulnerable to a knife problem or a gang problem.

Prevention really is better than cure. As such we invest police resources to deter young people from criminality and work with our partners to deliver alternative interventions to make Birmingham a safe environment for our children.

The ‘Tooled Up for School’ campaign has been extremely well received by teaching staff, police officers and pupils. It has made young people think about the consequences of bringing a weapon into school, and the effect that violence has in our schools and communities, particularly on pupils, teachers and the family members of victims.

Plans are being developed to hold a series of youth conference music events for young people across the West Midlands. As well as providing them with information that empowers resistance, the need to carry weapons, it also links in with police and partners to highlight the devastating consequences of violence within our communities. Each young person will be given the opportunity to sign the Peace Pledge and stand up against knife crime.

The gang issue is the same; there are certain areas of the West Midlands which can be more vulnerable to gang violence. Our aim is to work with the schools in these areas and raise the awareness of teaching staff, pupils and their parents to educate them on tell-tale signs of a problem so it can be prevented. This could be as simple as certain gang tags drawn on exercise books – if teachers are aware of what these affiliations mean then appropriate action can be carried out to curb any future behaviour.

During the past 18 months West Midlands Police, through a strategic partnership called “Birmingham Reducing Gang Violence”, has engaged in a head teachers forum to explore ways of raising knowledge amongst teaching and pastoral support professionals. Two well-attended seminars called ‘Street Influence’ were held in January this year attracting neighbourhood police officers and teaching staff from colleges, secondary schools and primary schools from across the city.

Further developments have now been made in designing a full day curriculum programme targeted at years nine and 10 to educate young people about the dangers of gang involvement. This will be rolled out to schools next year. There are also a number of parent’s consultation and awareness evenings to be held later this year. .

More comprehensive work has been developed to provide a formal assessment framework for frontline professionals from all agencies to identify vulnerability towards gang influences and culture. This assessment framework uses the key elements of Safeguarding Principles contained within national framework for ‘Every Child Matters’. We have endorsed this framework with schools.

Most schools have allowed us to come in and work with staff and students and we are grateful to them for that opportunity. We continue to support and develop our relationships with schools through the neighbourhood policing and we will work with them to tackle any issues impacting on the quality of life for local children and school staff. There are always some issues we won’t agree on, but these are in the minority and do not hinder the work we are carrying out in partnership with schools.