Projects and initiatives

Late night disorder is mainly linked to people drinking too much and is usually concentrated in the five Town Centres in Wandsworth.

The council and the Police take this form of disorder very seriously and have a system to monitor the Town Centres. In addition to their normal duties, the CCTV Control Room staff monitor the five centres from 10pm to 3am on Friday and Saturday nights. They are linked into the Police control room and can assist them in their response to any incidents recorded on the cameras. The Control Room staff act as extra eyes for the Police, which is particularly helpful if they are very busy.

In 2009 the CCTV controllers assisted on 541 late night disorder incidents including 122 incidents that lead to arrests (a total of 177 arrests were recorded).

Monitoring meetings are held every two months at which the Police, Community Safety, Licensing, Bus Operators, British Transport Police and Town Centre Managers discuss any major issues arising from the reports. The discussions often revolve around the management of the clubs and pubs in the Borough, transport problems associated with getting the people away from the area and home after the end of their evening out and where the hot spots for trouble are situated. Street crime in the early hours is also monitored very closely, particularly the theft of mobile phones or crime problems related to the use of cash points.

This group will have an important role in monitoring any problems arising from the recent changes in the Licensing Laws. For more information about those changes visit our Licensing section.