Vote now if you would like a temporary North Kensington police office
If you want a police presence in north Kensington it is really important everyone writes in to support it by the deadline this Friday. Responses can be brief and sent to me so I can collate and present the findings to Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC). Last year the Metropolitan Police Service and the MOPAC consulted on ways in which people access police services. During this, we heard that some people in North Kensington would like a dedicated place where they can contact Police face to face near Grenfell Tower, in response to the tragedy and ongoing recovery and support for this community. Although there will continue to be a police station front counter open 24 hours a day, seven days a week in Kensington, we agree that there is a special need for something here for a period of at least two years.
We have now proposed that a temporary police front counter will be opened in the area for at least two years, open during the daytime. Rather than imposing this idea on residents, though, we want to hear your views on this proposal to make sure our suggestion meets your needs.
As the local Police Inspector dedicated to you and the local community around Grenfell Tower, I am proposing that we open up the current Safer Neighbourhood Team (SNT) base here at Royalty Studios in Lancaster Road to you. This building is located in Notting Dale Ward, close to Grenfell Tower, but not within line of sight of the tower itself. At the moment, this building is home to your Dedicated Ward Officers and the Grenfell Community Team dedicated by the Borough Commander to working in the area after the fire. By putting the counter here, it would be fully integrated into the heart of the Grenfell Community Policing Team's base as well as alongside the other Safer Neighbourhood Teams in the Notting Hill area. This could be delivered very quickly and in my view, would enhance our already good relationship.
The building is rented by the MPS and the property owner has already consented to the change of use so that it can be used for this purpose. Work could commence quickly and the facility would be open soon.
Alternatively, we could consider other possible locations that may be identified during our engagement with you. These may be more expensive for the Police than Royalty Studios and because the counter will be staffed by a Public Access Officer, who is a member of Police Staff and not a Police Officer, any request to speak to a Police Officer would mean that an officer would need to travel to the location which will incur further waiting times. Other options could also take significantly longer before they were operational to you in the community. However, we do want to give people a say.
So that we can make the best decision for our community, I would be grateful for your views about the location and level of service.
1. Do you want a temporary police front counter in the area?
2a. If 'yes' – do you support putting a front counter in the existing safer neighbourhood base (Royalty Studios) in nearby Lancaster Road to be enhanced to support this i.e. close to, but not in sight of, Grenfell Tower?
2b. If you do not agree that Royalty Studios is the best option, do you have any other suggested locations which we should consider that we may not have thought of?
3. What are your reasons for not supporting opening Royalty Studios to the public?
4. The front counter will be open during the day on weekdays and into the evening one day a week. Do you have a view on which day would be suitable for late opening, whether weekend opening should be considered or any other views on opening times?
5. Do you have any other suggestions? If so, please comment below:
Please respond directly to the above questions to the following mailbox:
Alexander.bekker@met.pnn.police.uk
I look forward to hearing your comments so that we can deliver this service to our community here in North Kensington.
