Operation Reclaim: Police officers stationed in Old Market Square to increase visibility

The city commander of Nottinghamshire Police has made a commitment to the public to have dedicated officers stationed in Old Market Square.

This is part of Operation Reclaim, a partnership approach to tackling the major issues affecting the city centre including youth anti-social behaviour, drug dealing and weapon carrying.

Neighbourhood Policing Teams – both uniformed and plain-clothed – operate in the city centre every day with the help of colleagues from the knife crime and priority tasking teams.

City Commander, Superintendent Chris Pearson has now ensured dedicated officers on foot will be based in Old Market Square to add further visibility.

Analysing crime data, the officers are being deployed at the peak-times when incidents have occurred.

Superintendent Chris Pearson said:

"Since the launch of Operation Reclaim in April, I have been listening and taking note of the public's concerns.

"Many people have mentioned across social media that they never see police officers in the city centre or that they are sat behind vehicles.

"Rest assured, there are police officers in the city centre every day, both uniformed and plain-clothed officers who are dedicated to making your city safer.

"Over the last few months, we have locked up some of our most prolific offenders including those responsible for exploiting the vulnerable, those responsible for peddling drugs or carrying weapons and those responsible for targeting our business community.

"We also have a zero-tolerance approach to anti-social behaviour, with more young people than ever facing bans from the city and being escorted back home to their parents or guardians as part of our dedicated patrols set up to tackle this ongoing issue.

"We have been really clear that it will be parents or guardians who will ultimately pay the price if they don't seek the help and support available to control their children.

"Luckily, a number of parents and guardians are engaging in this process.

"However, I don't want the public to have the perception that they do not see our officers or that they are stuck behind police vehicles.

"That is why I have dedicated a number of police officers to be stationed in Old Market Square at peak times.

"Old Market Square is a central meeting point and used by hundreds of people every day.

"I want members of the public to approach our officers on duty and raise their concerns. They are there to help and listen.

"The officers based in Old Market Square will be in close contact with our neighbourhood policing teams across the city centre and the council's community protection officers feeding information directly to them so they can act on any intelligence they receive.

"These officers will be on foot, not behind vehicles and will be very approachable.  

"Nottingham is a vibrant city. I am a resident as well as a police officer and I want people to feel safe when they come into the city to either work, live or visit.

"Working together with our partners, I believe this can be achieved."

Chief Inspector Kylie Davies, who leads on city centre policing, said:

"We hope having this extra visibility in Old Market Square will offer further reassurance to the public.

"We have listened to the public's concerns. We have also launched a survey because we also want to hear from you in how we can shape the city centre.

"The survey only takes a few minutes to complete and will be shared amongst our partners including Nottingham City Council.

"This is not a survey without action. This is a 'you said, we did' approach because it is vitally important to us that we focus our resources on the things that matter most to you."  

Councillor Matt Shannon, Executive Member for Community Protection, Neighbourhoods and Equalities at Nottingham City Council, said:

"Operation Reclaim is about listening to residents' concerns and taking visible action to make Nottingham city centre feel safer for everyone who lives, works and visits here.

"Nottingham City Council's Community Protection team is already working in the city centre every day, tackling anti-social behaviour and environmental issues.

"In the coming weeks, additional resources will further strengthen this work, providing more high-visibility reassurance and helping us respond to issues that matter most to residents and businesses.

"Working closely with Nottinghamshire Police and our partners, we are taking a joined-up approach to creating a safer, cleaner and more welcoming city centre for everyone."

The survey closes on June 19. To take part in shaping the future of Nottingham city centre please click here