Blackpool residents share 'frustration' and fear over lack of police presence on 'lawless' streets and parks as Lancashire Constabulary announce £2m boost to reduce antisocial behaviour

The county has been awarded £2m to provide increased, visible police patrols, dedicated to tackling antisocial behaviour in problem areas – like parks, high streets and on public transport.

Blackpool Gazette visited two of these “hotspots” where residents and business owners shared their fears and frustrations that the issues are ‘getting worse’ and that they ‘don’t feel safe’.

‘I see drug deals every day’

Shop owners in the town centre have reported ‘bins kicked into the street’, shoplifting, verbal abuse, open drug dealing and prostitution.

A salon owner told the Gazette: “I see drug deals going on every day. The dealer stands and waits and the customers flock to him like seagulls it’s ridiculous illegal activity. There’s no police at all, only traffic wardens.”

‘It looks bad for the street and for the shop’

Windows are ‘constantly’ broken, several sources confirmed. The Singh’s had a brick thrown through the window of their takeaway restaurant. A neighbouring shop was targeted in the same way, a week later.

Mrs Singh said: “It just makes me feel sick. You come to earn a living and then it costs me money to repair the damage. It looks bad for the street and for the shop. It feels like it’s never going to get better."

‘Everyone in the town is fed up’

A town centre newsagent described how things started getting bad around a year ago. The family-run business has been targeted by a ‘group of five or six’ who reached over the counter and helped themselves to a load of e-cigs from behind a perspex screen. He described it as ‘constant harassment’, and said ‘everyone in the town is fed up’.

Neil Twiss shared CCTV footage of an attempted break-in on Monday 20 March, 2023. He told the Gazette that a ‘lack of police presence’ is a big part of the problem.

"Every day there’s something, the kids with the black masks causing riot. I never see any police as a visual deterrent. It’s just got worse and worse.”

E-bike rider ‘laughed and went off’ after almost hitting a dog

Layton residents told the Gazette that vandalism, drugs and quad bikes have ‘blighted’ Kingscote Park, and become ‘much worse over the last few years’.

The group of regular park-goers described ‘young men dressed head to toe in black’ riding on e-bikes ‘at great speeds’.

One described an incident where a rider almost hit her dog.

“He was all masked up so all you could see was his eyes, going really fast. He just laughed and went off with his mate. it's really intimidating. They have no regard for anyone.”

‘Police say at least we know where they are, but it’s not a nice environment’

Another walker lives on Kingscote Drive and said she ‘sees everything’ from her house. “It used to be lovely on here, now all you see is people coming in and out of vans dealing drugs. Police say at least we know where they are, but it’s not a nice environment.”

The ladies all recalled seeing ‘kids setting the bins on fire and knocking them over’.

“I was walking the dogs and there were four boys and two girls, they had set a fire and when the firefighters went to talk to them they started throwing stuff at them.”

Another park-goer said it’s ‘no worse than anywhere else’, but would avoid being on the park after around 4pm.

“The more presence you’ve got here, the more you can keep the antisocial behaviour at bay. The police can’t be here all the time, it’s just the way of the world now. It’s a lovely park really, and I like it here but it’s always the odd bad element that spoils it.”

What are Blackpool Council and the police doing about antisocial behaviour on Kingscote Park?

Blackpool Council have been working closely alongside the police, ‘Friends of’ group and the rugby club to find solutions to the issues on Kingscote Park.

Solar lighting was recently installed along the main path into the park, and the council has been upgrading the lights within the lamp posts along with a review of the existing CCTV.

Councillor Neal Brookes, Cabinet Member for Enforcement, Public Safety, Highways and Transport said: “We will be working with the ‘Friends of’ group to engage in community events and activities to encourage further use of the park to discourage anti-social behaviour and in terms of the letter a wider consultation will take place in relation to the introduction of Public Space Protection Orders across the borough to make all parks areas safer.”

Increase in police officers

Blackpool’s Neighbourhood Policing team said: “There has and will continue to be an increase in police officers in the area, conducting high-visibility patrols. Anyone with concerns can stop and speak with the officers at any time. To report, call 101 or report online via the Lancashire Police website. If an emergency in ongoing, always call 999.”

What does the £2m investment mean for Blackpool?

The government has handed the county £2m to fund the initiative as part of its Antisocial Behaviour Action Plan, which was launched on Monday.

Andrew Snowden, the Tory police and crime commissioner for Lancashire, welcomed the extra cash that his force would now have at its disposal in order to focus on driving down antisocial incidents. He approached the government at the start of the year and offered to work with its new antisocial behaviour task force to better target the problem in Lancashire.

Speaking about the new money that the county has now been allocated, Mr. Snowden said that it will “go a long way towards addressing the devastating impact antisocial behaviour has on communities”.

"Antisocial behaviour isn’t a minor crime, nor is it acceptable here in Lancashire. It makes life miserable for so many and it can be a gateway to more serious crimes. It's an issue residents raise with me time and time again, and I'm pleased that Lancashire’s voice is being heard."

‘Antisocial behaviour can have an overwhelming impact on its victims’

Lancashire Police chief constable Chris Rowley warned that, “where left unchecked, antisocial behaviour can have an overwhelming impact on its victims and, in some cases, the wider community”.

He added: “Everyone has the right to be safe and feel safe in Lancashire and we are committed to working with our communities and partners to tackle antisocial behaviour.

“We look at all the incidents reported to us across the county and make sure we have a local pro-active, operational response in place where it is required and use all the legislation available to us including criminal behaviour orders, dispersal orders and other tools.

“However, there is always more that can be done and this extra funding is very welcome. It will help to further strengthen our resources and boost the good work already under way in Lancashire to tackle antisocial behaviour."