Community safety
The Tunbridge Wells Community Safety Unit (CSU) is a partnership of local organisations including Kent Police, Tunbridge Wells Borough Council, Kent County Council and others. The CSU is focussed on tackling crime, anti-social behaviour and other ‘quality of life’ issues in your community.
Contents
Partnership Plan 2023/24
The Tunbridge Wells Community Safety Partnership Plan was agreed at Full Council on 5 April 2023.
Our priorities for this year are:
- Domestic abuse
- Substance misuse and supply, and alcohol related behaviour
- Anti-Social behaviour
- Road Safety
- Violent behaviour (including Violence Against Women and Girls, Night Time Economy, and knife crime).
Domestic Abuse Support
The West Kent Domestic Abuse One Stop Shop (OSS) at 4 New Wharf Road, Tonbridge, TN9 1DS is open from 9am until noon every Wednesday. The OSS is staffed by an Independent Domestic Violence Advocate (IDVA) and provides a service for residents living in Tunbridge Wells, Tonbridge and Malling and Sevenoaks.
Alternatively, you may wish to contact the following local or national organisations for support and advice:
Domestic Abuse Volunteer Support Services (DAVSS) supporting both men and women through and beyond crisis.
Website: davss.org.uk
Look Ahead Care and Support provide support to victims of domestic abuse whose cases have been graded as high risk, refuge places for those fleeing violence, a weekly DA One Stop Shop, and much more.
Website: lookahead.org.uk
Community Domestic Abuse Programme (CDAP) is a well-respected and effective perpetrators program for men who are ready to take responsibility for their behaviour.
Website: kentcdap.org
Dads Unlimited provide support to male victims of domestic abuse to provide them with emotional and practical support, to reduce risk, increase safety, and protect them and their families from harm.
Website: dadsunltd.org.uk
Interventions Alliance provide treatment for domestic abuse offenders through a treatment model called Dialectical Behavioural Therapy (DBT), helping perpetrator to accept and manage the difficult emotions that trigger harmful behaviour.
Website: interventionsalliance.com
Protection Against Stalking provide specialist support services to victims of stalking and work within communities to raise public awareness.
Website: protectionagainststalking.org
Victim Support Assessment and Triage
Telephone: 0808 168 9276
If you need a refuge space please call Refuge on 0808 2000 247 or if you are in immediate danger please call 999.
National Domestic Abuse Helpline
Telephone: 0808 2000 247 (free 24-hour Helpline)
Chat: A live chat service is available Monday to Friday 3pm to 10pm on the website below.
Website: nationaldahelpline.org.uk
Public Spaces Protection Order
Public Spaces Protection Orders (PSPO) for the borough of Tunbridge Wells, Tunbridge Wells town centre, and Southborough were scheduled for implementation on 10 September 2018, following approval at Full Council in April 2018.
Details of the Full Council meeting can be found here.
In summary, the conditions set to be imposed will help us address anti-social behaviour associated with rough sleeping, begging and public drinking of alcohol, amplified noise that causes an unreasonable disturbance, unleashed dogs at Nevill Cricket Ground and St Marks Rec.
There will also be a borough-wide increase from £50 to £100 where penalty notices are issued for dog fouling (when not cleaned up).
Further details of the PSPO can be found on our public spaces protection orders page.
Community Trigger
The Community Trigger is the name generally applied to the Response to Complaints section of the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014. It enables people experiencing anti-social behaviour to require agencies to carry out a case review when their initial complaints have seemingly not given due attention.
If a person has made three complaints about anti-social behaviour within a 6-month period and the anti-social behaviour has not been addressed we will perform a case review to ensure relevant agencies are sighted on the issue and actions are put in place to resolve it.
Regardless of whether the Trigger threshold is reached we will always help to resolve issues of anti-social behaviour so please do get in touch.
The table below outlines local Community Trigger outcomes since the first application was made in 2016.
| Date and reference | Threshold met | Recommendations | Action plan | Comment(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016-001 | No | N/A | N/A | Specific investigations were ongoing |
| 2016-002 | No | N/A | N/A | Specific investigations were ongoing |
| 2017-001 | No | N/A | Yes | Action plan in place |
| 2017-002 | No | N/A | Yes | Agencies actively engaged |
| 2018-001 | No | N/A | No | Relevant agencies actively involved |
| 2018-002 | No | N/A | No | |
| 2019-001 | Yes | No | Yes | Actions were already underway |
| 2020-001 | No | N/A | Yes | |
| 2022-001 | No | N/A | Yes | Action Plan underway |
| 2022-002 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
For further information or to initiate a potential case review please contact us on 01892 526121 and ask to speak to the Community Safety Officer.
CCTV
There are important public realm CCTV-related documents in the Documents section below.