Chair calls for return to local policing model to help tackle knife crime

29 September 2023

West Midlands Police Federation chair Rich Cooke has called for a return to community policing during an interview on national television.

Rich made the case for local policing when he appeared on Talk TV to talk about knife crime following the stabbing in South London of 15-year-old Elianne Andam.

He said: “My heart goes out to the family. I’m a father myself and I empathise deeply with the family.

“From a policing point of view, we want to get back to a local policing model, a traditional style of policing that we’ve lost in the past 10 to 15 years.

“Local officers who know their areas, know the people in their areas and are able to spot problems before they happen.

“We called it neighbourhood policing in the past. It’s the best, most efficient form of policing we can give the public but it needs a lot more investment.

“We’ve reverted to this style where we come in and out of areas when there’s a problem. We parachute in and parachute out in a blaze of blue lights and that’s clearly not what’s working.”

West Midlands Police Federation chair Rich Cooke talking on camera to TALK TV

West Midlands Police Federation chair Rich Cooke spoke to Talk TV about tackling knife crime

Rich described knife crime as a “multi-faceted problem” which needed to be tackled from many angles.

He said: “Sentencing is far too weak, repeat offenders getting away with it time and time again when they should be going to prison.

“Youth services is a big one, particularly for students excluded from schools who are often on the route to crime. They’re vulnerable. They often carry knives as a status symbol or as a fashion item.

“I’ve campaigned this year around the online sales of knives which are deliberately marketed at young people - and I’m a bit disappointed with the government’s proposals,

“The government is trying to ban zombie knives, which is one, but what is it doing about the vast number of other weapons that are easily available online?

“Yes, there are age restrictions, but in rule only. They’re easy to bypass for kids, particularly kids without close parental control.”

Rich said that West Midlands Police was taking a harder line on anyone caught carrying a weapon.

And he called for investment in the criminal justice system to ensure offenders are dealt with in a timely manner and taken off the streets.

He continued: “We went through a phase where we weren’t really arresting juveniles who were caught with great big knives, but now that’s changing in West Midlands because we can’t make excuses for younger offenders who are potential killers at the end of the day.

“We’ve got to protect the innocent lives first.

“If you’re out there carrying a weapon, whether you’re 15 or 16, you need to be locked up because you’re dangerous.

“We can’t arrest our way out of the problem. There’s got to be a pushback on the courts and the CPS because we’ve still got to get the cases to court.

“We’ve got to have the willingness to charge people.

“And we’ve got to have the ability to get things to court, to get justice and get the sentences, because the time it’s taking to get things to court is ridiculous.

“The government needs to invest urgently in the courts because justice delayed is justice denied.

“We’re not processing people fast enough, and I think that’s one of the key issues.”

Rich finished the interview with a message of support for officers.

He said: “With the current media narrative a lot of police have lost confidence.

“They’ve lost confidence in using their powers, they’re worried about being over-scrutinised, they’re worried about the misconduct processes.

“We’ve got to deal with the bad, but empower the overwhelming majority of good police, and say that we have confidence in them, we want them to use their powers, we want them to be proactive and not reactive.

“That’s the style of policing we need.”