Safer Redhill partners came together this week at the Harlequin Pop Up in The Belfry to share progress on activities already underway to tackle anti-social behaviour and crime in the town centre and to discuss ideas and information about next steps.

Cllr Richard Biggs, Leader of Reigate & Banstead Borough Council said: "It's inspiring to see so many people in the room who want to help us take pride in our town and make sure that Redhill is a great destination that everyone can enjoy. I always say the best cure for anti-social behaviour is more social behaviour - which includes more people joining us in looking out for each other and calling out ASB and crime. 

"It's clear that a lot has been achieved in a relatively short time - from new solar lighting in Memorial Park and a state-of-the-art Y Bus, to the impressive results of targeted police work - but I'm excited about what more we can do. By listening to the feedback from the community research undertaken by Neighbourly Lab, as well as local partner views on what we should prioritise for our future work, we can better understand the causes of ASB and crime. This approach, if it continues to be successful, is something we will want the whole borough to benefit from."

Targeted police activity continues as we work with our dedicated county lines team to disrupt criminal groups operating in and around Redhill town.

Over the past few weeks, we have executed a series of targeted warrants at five addresses across the east of Surrey and south London to target drug dealers bringing substances into Redhill.

As a result, five individuals were arrested, with three people charged and remanded in custody. We have successfully recovered a substantial quantity of class A drugs, along with £22,000 in cash, six illegal air weapons, and five mobile phones believed to be connected to drug supply.

Borough Commander Inspector Jon Vale said: “We know drugs can cause significant harm within our communities. We will continue to take proactive measures to identify those responsible for bringing drugs into our towns and hold them accountable."

This series of targeted warrants sits alongside the ongoing police patrols within Redhill town centre. Surrey Police has recently received £1 million ‘hotspot’ funding from the Home Office following a successful bid by the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner. This aims to increase police visibility in hotspot areas identified through analysis of local crime data, of which Redhill is one. The funding will maintain enhanced uniformed patrols in the town, as well as support from plain clothed officers, to deter crime and take strong enforcement action where needed.

A campaign around anti-social behaviour (ASB) in Redhill is running from 8 July to 8 August on Instagram, Facebook, X and Linkedin, with the help of Redhill-based agency The Chain. The campaign aims to increase people's understanding of the Safer Redhill project, to identify the different types of ASB and to encourage people to call it out and report it. The posts are running on our partner accounts: Reigate & Banstead Borough Council, Surrey Police, YMCA East Surrey and supported by the Redhill Business Guild. We would very much welcome your support in liking and sharing these posts when you see them and encouraging your colleagues to report ASB via the links on the website.

Jo Grimshaw, Surrey Police's Community Safety lead and Reigate & Banstead Borough Council's Community Safety Officer, Trevor Ford, delivered a training session for local partners on approaches for tackling anti-social behaviour earlier this month. In attendance were Redhill Street Pastors, representatives from the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner, Surrey Police officers and officers from the council's Joint Enforcement Team (JET), community safety, environmental health, and housing teams.

Jo said: “It was great to see police, various departments from the borough council and volunteers from the amazing Street Pastor team, coming together to learn about tackling ASB in Redhill. Most importantly, we discussed the harm ASB can cause to victims and what we can do to support them to feel safer and ultimately ensure the anti-social behaviour stops.”

As part of the Cromwell Fun Day event held on 29 June, we engaged with residents about their views on making Cromwell estate safer and neighbourly. Everyone was supportive of the plans for improved equipment in the play area. We also heard from young people and adults who shared some great ideas with us about improving the area around the MUGA to address anti-social behaviour in the park.The Council and other Safer Redhill partners will now work to put some of these suggestions into practice.

This month the council installed new solar lights in Redhill's Memorial Park, paid for with Safer Streets funding. The lights are programmed to come on at sunset for three hours each evening and then to be triggered by movement for the rest of the night. The council will be reviewing their performance over the next few months. 

YMCA’s Y Bus has been out bringing activities and support directly to young people in Redhill. The bus is equipped with everything from kitchen facilities to games console, ensuring that there is something for everyone to enjoy. As the weather improves, YMCA youth workers are starting to see larger numbers of young people in the park, engaging with 218 young people in June.

The Y Bus moves around Redhill between the town centre, Memorial Park and Cromwell Estate during the following times:

Mondays | 18:00-20:00

Tuesdays | 17:15-19:15

Wednesdays | 18:00-20:00

Thursdays | 17:30-19:30

In addition to the Y Bus, YMCA East Surrey is organising a summer holiday schedule of activities for young people, including watersports, high ropes, bowling plus much more. For more details, visit www.ymcaeastsurrey.org.uk or email yes@ymcaeastsurrey.org.uk.

If you tuned in to the BBC Radio Surrey breakfast show on 9 July, you might have heard a discussion about Safer Redhill. The Leader of Reigate & Banstead Borough Council, Cllr Richard Biggs, Chief Inspector Alex Maguire from Surrey Police and Andy Nash, manager of The Belfry Shopping Centre in Redhill, were all discussing how we're working together and with partners to address concerns about crime and anti-social behaviour. 

You can listen back on BBC Sounds using the link below:

• Cllr Richard Biggs is from 1:10
• Chief Inspector Alex Maguire and Andy Nash from 2:09