Agenda item

City of London Police Update

The Commissioner of the City of London Police to be heard.

Minutes:

Members received an update of the Chief Inspector of the City of London Police and the following points were made:

 

  • The City of London continued to experience low footfall with the busiest area being the east of the City.  There had been a noticeable reduction in the number of homeless and rough sleeping individuals and fewer reports of rough sleeping from the public. 

 

  • Operation Luscombe which aimed to identify issues and support those who were living on the streets had restarted on 18 October 2020 and 12 individuals had been referred to support services to date.  The Inspector of the British Transport Police confirmed that British Transport Police were linking in with the City of London Police on Operation Luscombe and also worked closely with Network Rail.  The level of begging at Liverpool Street Station had been significantly lower than normal during the COVID-19 period.  In response to a question from the Deputy Chair, the Chief Inspector explained that there had been a funding change for Operation Luscombe but that work to target rough sleeping was a key workstream and would continue with no change to the existing model.  Another Member highlighted the need to deliver a coordinated approach across other transport hubs and local churches.

 

RESOLVED, that the update be noted.