Episode 9 Neighbourhood Blues

Neighbourhood policing has come a long way

since the days of Dixon Of Dock Green.

Good evening, all.

From inner-city estates to suburbia...

..this new generation of community police officers

are on the front line.

-What are you doing?!

-Police!

Their aim is to develop a stronger bond with the community...

Have you had any problems, then? Over the last week?

..crack down on the crimes taking place on their doorstep...

-So, you've been drinking tonight?

-No!

-Why is your speech slurred, then?

..formulate fast action plans to take down the criminals.

Can't be too careful.

Who do you think you are?!

-Hey!

-(BLEEP)!

In this new series of Neighbourhood Blues,

we go to the Humberside Police region

and get exclusive access to 24 teams of neighbourhood police officers...

You're under arrest, mate.

..as they tackle the problems blighting local people...

You're now under arrest

on suspicion of intent to supply a controlled drug.

..and rise to the challenge of making the streets a safer place.

Coming up...

A potentially dangerous menace goes on the run...

At the moment, you're under arrest for shop theft,

threats to kill, and breach of your anti-social behaviour order, OK?

..the team go on a crime-fighting spree, following a spate of burglaries...

Anyone could still break into the house.

It's just the effort they've got to go through to get in.

..and the police try and keep the peace on a night out on the town.

Don't be silly.

Face that way if you're going to be sick.

I don't want it on my boots.

A key to good neighbourhood policing is making the team's presence felt

in towns and villages across the country.

Putting hundreds of bobbies back on the beat

has received the full backing of the public and,

as we're about to find out,

it's a great way to warn off trouble-makers

and take fast action when a problem gets out of control.

Across the country,

over 30,000 community officers take to the streets every day,

clocking up a sole-shredding 50,000 miles between them on beat walks.

There are a lot of Police Community Support Officers

that have good relations with all the people in the community,

local businesses, schools and children and that sort of thing.

I think they've prevented quite a lot of crime.

We have a very good relationship with our local PCSO.

I think it needs the community's support as well as the police...

-Yeah, that's right.

-..and together, that makes a good team.

We work predominantly in uniform, high visibility,

in an overt manner, to let people know that we are there

and it's not just to let the communities know.

It's also to let the offenders, you know,

the people that are causing those issues.

We will go knock on their doors,

we will tell them that they will be subject to extra scrutiny

by the police and that that scrutiny will continue

until they stop causing misery to the local residents.

The neighbourhood teams also hold regular surgeries and meetings,

so problems can be discussed openly and solutions found.

Vehicle crime is down nearly half...

All in all, this is one neighbourhood police force

that is big on community and big on cutting the causes of crime.

I think neighbourhood policing is, without doubt, the way forward.

As well as hitting the streets

to solve problems that can blight local areas,

neighbourhood police teams are on hand 24/7

to respond to any emergency call for help.

Over at Pearson Park Station,

PC Martina Akrill has just taken a call

from the manager of a local supermarket.

They have reported that a suspect was spotted

stealing meat from the refrigerator aisle.

When confronted by a security guard,

he was alleged to have made a threat to kill.

From the information supplied,

Martina can make a positive ID on the man.

The man has no permanent address,

but moves between friends and family.

Are you and Sarah going to go that way?

Martina has a hunch that he may be hiding out at a friend's house,

so the team head over there.

Hiya, sorry to bother you.

I've been given this address for a Mark Stubbs.

We're after him, apparently he's friends with (BLEEP), who lives here.

-Have you not?

-No.

Has he been staying here at all?

You're not really here?

Right, OK.

Do you mind if we come in and make sure he's not here now?

-Is that all right?

-Yeah, sure.

-OK, thank you.

-Is there anybody else in the house?

-No.

The man they find at the address claims he doesn't live there

and is just couch surfing.

Despite claiming that the suspect has never been there,

Martina is taking no chances and decides to search the property.

One room in particular arouses the team's suspicion...

..not least of all

because of the potent smell emanating from it.

Cannabis.

Where's that been growing, then?

Whilst the wanted man isn't hiding there,

questions still need to be answered

about the cannabis that has been discovered.

Whose is this plant?

Cannabis plant.

Is this where you've been sleeping?

The couch surfer is questioned,

but continues to deny all knowledge of the illegal drugs.

Can you not smell it as soon as you walk through the door?

I was, but, me,

I come in...after a drink,

I just get in my bed and then go to sleep.

Has Mark been staying here, then?

I came two days ago

and I came in

and I was like, "Who's that in my bed?"

and then I...

and then I just walked downstairs

and just went to sleep down there, so...

Where's (BLEEP) now?

She's in town, cos...

She hasn't even been back since yesterday.

Is she with Mark?

I don't know. I don't have a clue.

-You don't know or you don't want to tell me?

-No!

I actually don't know,

cos she rang me at quarter to one this morning,

going, "Oh, Mark's gone missing," or something.

Right. Have you got any way of getting hold of her

to ask her if she knows where Mark's gone?

Have you seen him here this morning?

-No?

-No. Oh!

I was... I was asleep,

I woke up at half four, I heard banging

and I looked out the window and it was him

and he was on the phone to someone, saying, "I'm on my way back,"

I don't know if he's gone back into town, going to his mam's or not.

OK.

The mini-crop of cannabis is removed,

but the police decide not to bring any charges in relation to it.

Martina and the team leave the property,

but their search for the man continues.

As we find out later,

the wanted man may still be on the run,

but the neighbourhood team are soon closing in on him.

It's Saturday night and the neighbourhood team

are gearing up for a busy night shift.

But for all their new approach to policing,

neighbourhood teams across the country still have to be there

to deal with age-old problems, such as rowdy revellers.

Obviously in town on, say, Saturday and Friday nights,

you get quite a few people just walking around a bit too drunk

and starting to urinate in places and get a bit rowdy.

I was assaulted on a night out last week.

I was punched in the face and had to go to hospital

and then gave a police statement the following morning.

If you do see anybody acting in any manner whatsoever

which you think is going to relate to...alcohol-related violence,

please use the Section 27 as quickly as we possibly can

and let's get them outside the city centre.

A Section 27 order gives the police the power to move on and bar

anyone they believe who has the potential

to cause alcohol-related disorder

from a specific area for anything up to 48 hours.

These orders have proven very successful

in curbing alcohol-related anti-social behaviour

in the city centre.

OK, everyone happy?

Any questions?

The team will be patrolling in pairs

and tonight,

Gareth will be working alongside fellow neighbourhood officer Kat.

We're working Hull city centre tonight on a public order patrol

on a Saturday night.

Myself and my colleague Kat

have been given the responsibility for George Street tonight

and Pozition Nightclub, the biggest nightclub that we've got in Hull,

so it'll get busy later on.

There's Hull City fans out tonight and Crawley football fans

after there's been a football game at home today, where Hull City lost,

so there's some intelligence

that there's groups of fans mixing in the pubs, etcetera,

which may lead to spontaneous violence later.

So, we'll see if we can quell that before it starts.

With hundreds of people out in the city's many bars and clubs,

they are expecting tonight to be a busy one.

So, tonight might be the busiest weekend so far after Christmas.

Football match mixed in as well,

so we'll see how we go for numbers tonight.

As well as keeping an eye on the streets,

Gareth and Kat work closely with local bar staff.

Can we have your print-out sheet?

-Your duty sheet.

-Your duty sheet or something?

Part of our public order duty

is to check that all the door staff are registered,

they're all wearing their SIA badges

that qualify them to work in a security industry such as these.

Clubs here very kindly provide us with their print-out

of what staff they've got on for the night,

all SIA badge numbers, full details, etcetera.

So, if we need to speak to anybody, we know that they're on duty tonight.

The crowds are in high spirits, and public order patrols like this

are the ideal opportunity for the team

to build relations with the general public.

-Thank you.

-All right, no problem.

Yeah, it's all taken in good humour, really.

We're actively encouraged, really, to engage with the public

on public order nights,

shake people's hands, have photos taken with them,

let them wear our hats and things like that.

It keeps the public on-side

and shows them that we're only human after all, we're only doing a job.

So there's no reason to be negative towards them, really,

you might as well engage with them, you're out for eight hours.

As well as foot patrols,

the team work alongside the council's CCTV Control Centre

who alert them to anything suspicious they capture on camera.

We're just going to make our way over back to Pozition Nightclub now.

There's been a call via the city CCTV system

that's on a radio link with all the door staff around the town centre.

There's a possible group of males that have, I think,

been refused entry at the front of the nightclub

and there's a possibility there's some tensions rising.

So we'll go across, fly the flag,

and see if we can sort of quash the trouble before it starts.

Right, OK. Why? What's the problem?

The four of us tried coming in,

and because there's four of us, we aren't allowed in.

Right, OK. Let's have a word with the staff

and try to get a reason as to why, all right?

-Hey, mate.

-We don't want them in.

You don't want them in? OK, not a problem.

We made a good call.

We turn hundreds of people away and we don't get that reaction.

That proves it. What if someone knocked into you at the bar?

That's how he'd react if someone knocked into him at the bar.

He would react like that, wouldn't he?

It's important that they disperse the situation.

It's estimated that, each year, alcohol contributes

to over one million violent crimes in England.

So Gareth and Kat try to calm the lads down

while they wait for back-up to arrive.

Get off the road and get away.

Why are you pushing me?

Right, I ain't done nowt.

Like I say, you've been in an altercation with the door staff...

Back-up arrives,

and they manage to get the man in the police van.

He's refusing to co-operate,

so Gareth issues him with a Section 27 order.

I'm not saying you've been violent, but you've been...

The door staff have made a complaint,

there's been an altercation and that's that.

That's pure pathetic.

-Why?

-He's got an order for this.

But outside the van,

Kat's having similar problems with the man's brother

and has no option but to also issue him with a Section 27 order.

I was only going in there for a couple of drinks then going home.

Right, can I ask you for a signature here,

just to say that you've checked your details

and you understand that you've got to leave the city centre.

-Right, out you go.

-No wonder the country's so (BLEEP).

-(BLEEP). No wonder whatsoever.

-You've got until 12:10 to leave.

-Yeah, I'm going, all right? I'm going.

-Marvellous.

(BLEEP) off. I'm going.

As you can see, one of the brothers was quite amenable to it,

he took the details, the other one wanted to argue,

didn't seem to want to listen,

wanted his point across, but wouldn't listen to our side of the story.

But eventually he's been issued with a notice, which he refused to sign.

He's now making his way out of the town centre

after being told the conditions of that, been issued with a map...

The CCTV system from the city is going to follow these males

out of the town centre.

If they don't leave by the time that we've given them,

which is a 20-minute period,

then they will be arrested and put before the next available court.

Back on patrol, Gareth and Kat soon come across

another group of party-goers who attract their attention.

Will you sort her out, please? She's giving me attitude.

This time, it's a group of cousins who aren't getting on.

-A family feud.

-She can't get in Pozition because she's banned.

And we were going to go in there and she said to us,

"Oh, go on then, you go in there and we'll go home..."

-Right.

-Right? And she's gone home...

-Yep. So where are you going now?

-To get something to eat.

-With her?

-Yeah. No, not with her.

-Right, OK.

Now she's walking off up the street.

Okey dokey.

They begin to move on but the argument continues,

causing Gareth to act as a peace-maker.

Oh, mate, sort it out!

Sort her attitude (BLEEP) out. (BLEEP)

Sort her out, her attitude stinks!

What's your first name, pet?

Right, I'm going home.

Good. Are you all right to go home without your friends?

-Yes. I want her, anyway.

-Which one?

-Which one?

-Her. I want her.

Will you please take that off her?

-Are you going home with her?

-You take her home.

Take what off her? It's on me, don't worry.

Are you all going home together?

No more arguing!

With the girls safely on their way home,

Gareth and Kat head back out on patrol

and it's not long before another challenge comes their way.

Do you want an ambulance for her?

Er... Yes, please.

Burglary remains one of the most worrying crimes for UK residents.

Last year, over a million people were burgled.

We had some people break into the flats that I live in

and steal some laptops and things like that.

There's also a lot of people getting bikes stolen,

people coming out and cutting the chains

and whatever they've got to lock up the bike.

It's general knowledge.

You hear things from other people as well

and you see the statistics and the flyers from the police,

so you've got to be aware,

particularly making sure that you lock your doors and your cars.

But in Humberside,

the police are constantly looking for new ways to catch thieves.

Today, PCSO Sam Gregory and the team

are checking out a house that has been targeted by burglars.

That was out before.

So he's pushed them boards up.

Last night, Sam was called to the property,

when word came through that a burglar had struck again.

The police have been keeping a watch on the house,

because it had been burgled previously

whilst the owner was away.

Obviously, we've realised that the house has been targeted

and as a team, we've worked to try to find somebody that's breaking in.

Although the house is currently still unoccupied,

it's been boarded up to try and protect it,

but that has still not stopped people trying to get in.

They've kicked the door in that much

that they actually took it off the door jambs,

the whole door jamb has gone in with it.

But the person who broke in last night was in for a surprise.

They were caught on camera.

The house was rigged with a night-vision camera

and a silent alarm linked to the police station,

meaning the team were alerted to the break-in

and were able to be on the scene within minutes.

The burglar had arrived at the house on a bike,

but was forced to abandon it and flee on foot.

What we believe to be his bike and the point of entry into the grounds.

The sergeant that's found the bike is going to book it in as an exhibit

and we'll go from there.

So, the CCTV has been checked, what we was talking about earlier,

which has helped them find where the bike is and his point of entry.

They've looked at the CCTV.

It shows one male, come down, so he's been on his own,

he's dumped his bike and the alarm's gone off.

In the house?

In the house.

As more and more police arrive on the scene,

it's not long before the thief goes from being caught on camera

to captured by a copper in the bushes

and shipped straight to the custody suite.

Like I say, until somebody moves in and permanently lives in here,

it's going to be a house that's targeted.

It's through teamwork within Humberside

that we've caught this particular gent.

Catching criminals is one way of cutting crime,

but just as important is putting together crime prevention advice

for the public.

Burglaries in the Humberside region have dropped significantly

due to proactive community policing.

Whilst the neighbourhood teams are there to solve crimes,

they are also there to try to prevent them from happening

in the first place.

In Hull, Hazel and Gus are taking to the streets

offering security advice to the local community.

Today's the day of our crime reduction initiative.

It's following the letter-drop we did a few days ago

and just to go round and offer people

some free crime prevention advice.

Back end of last year,

we was asked to identify our problem area

for a crime reduction initiative

and there had been a few shed burglaries

in the area that we're going to.

The team have already done a mail-drop to local residents

and now they've come back to speak to them directly.

...and talk to them about security coding of their property,

shed alarms, post-coding their cycles

and anything else we can help them with.

Gus is also making a reassurance visit

to a lady that recently had her shed broken into.

On my birthday last year, the shed actually got broken into

and they stole my son's bicycle.

Oh, right. Is your shed alarmed and also monitored?

Gus has an alarm for Lisa that can help protect her property in future.

A learn button, and all you have to do is to take the screw out,

I believe it's up here.

I thought it was quite good, yeah,

especially as I'd had a break-in last year into the shed

and someone had stolen my son's bike.

I was quite pleased, really, so I can protect the other three now.

Gus also sets to work,

putting some security markings on the family's bicycles

which can help identify them, should they ever get stolen.

What I'm doing is actually I'm finding a space,

which is going to be most suitable to actually engrave

the postcode and the house number on.

And Lisa is a big supporter

of the whole neighbourhood police initiative.

I like the fact I see him about because my son, obviously, he's 15,

so when he's out and about and, you know, I like him to be in by 10.

It's just nice to see.

I often see them walking about. It's nice, really.

-Thank you very much for your time.

-Thank you for yours.

-Pleasure.

Morning!

I'm Hazel, one of your local PCSOs.

The team have highlighted the areas with property crime

but local residents like Dave,

have already started to put their own security measures in place.

Just before Christmas there was a couple of shed burglaries on here.

Luckily we got most of the property back

and a couple of people did get locked up

but it just highlighted on our crime maps

that this was a problem area, which is why we're doing this.

There's a new system called Immobilise.

And it seems that these types of visits

do make residents more crime conscious.

Since I've been here, I'm aware of my local community, neighbours etc.

having crime from sheds and such,

so that's made me more aware and more conscious

to take better precautions of my own property.

And Dave's gone a step further, installing cameras

that link to his phone and laptop.

So that's the one looking down the drive.

If you take care of everything you've got

and make sure that it's as hard as it can be,

you can never say you won't get burgled,

because anyone can still break into the house.

It's the amount of effort they've to go through to get in.

It's been a morning well spent,

spreading the word on crime prevention.

Really well. Really pleased with that.

I think I did... I think it was ten full surveys, sort of gardens,

bit of advice in the house

and got to speak to some lovely people that we don't normally see.

Yep, three cycles marked.

Yeah, I've got you an appointment for tomorrow as well

-to do some more, another two. Yeah, great.

-That's grand.

Back in Hull City Centre,

new Section 27 powers are being used to keep revellers in check.

They're fairly new powers

what the government's give to police officers,

within the boundaries of the law,

by banning people from an area,

and using it in different courses during our day-to-day work,

as in prostitutes who we deal with.

Yeah, four one, can you just confirm central

for the breach of Section 27?

Yeah, from two one, can you confirm that ours is already...?

Whilst most people are happy to have a good night out...

Come here!

..some people are just looking for trouble.

Like this man, who has already been banned from the centre of the city

for Section 27 public order offences the previous night.

Don't be silly.

Right, you're under arrest at the moment

for breaching a Section 27 dispersal order. OK?

Sh, just one second.

Encircling Hull City Centre is a controlled drinking zone.

The man has been found drunk within its confines.

Hey!

Take the cuffs off, man.

We can't take the cuffs off, no, you're under arrest, mate.

-For what?

-Don't be silly.

If you stop wriggling, they won't cut into your hands, will they?

They're burning my (BLEEP) hands now.

-They're doing what?

-Burning my hands.

-Burning?

-Yeah.

-Well, that's...

-Argh!

If you'd have left when you was given your order,

-you wouldn't be here, would you?

-This isn't town.

-This is the city centre.

-This isn't town.

-It's Silver Street.

-Is that town now?

This isn't town.

I'll smash your (BLEEP) head in!

You won't be smashing anybody's head in.

He's in an inebriated state and begins to struggle,

causing the police to restrain him.

But it's not long before the van is on the scene,

meaning he can be taken into custody.

Put my hat on.

Come on.

In you go then, one foot at a time.

-In you go, then.

-(BLEEP!)

-Put the camera away, camera away.

-Come on, then.

-Put the camera away.

My cap's there, right.

I want my hat there. Put that camera (BLEEP!)

-C'mon.

-Put the camera away.

When Alan gets him back to the station,

there is a nasty surprise in store...

when the man steps out of the van.

Put that camera away, man.

I want me hat! I want me hat!

As he continues to spit,

Alan takes some direct action to ensure the man keeps his mouth shut.

If you spit, I'll... Are you going to stop spitting?

Are you going to spit or not? Pack in spitting then.

-Aye.

-It'll go straight back on.

-Get your hands down! Get your hands down!

-Stop trying to get away.

Come on there, fella.

Booked in, the man is taken to the cells

but not without continuing to put up a fight.

What's that on the wall here?

(BLEEP!) Oh, look at this, man! Do you hear me?

BANGING ON DOOR

With the man banged up, Alan now has to write up his report

detailing the offences the man has committed.

We iterated to him and he said he fully understood the area

and he was given five minutes to leave.

Wes Connelly, how you doing, Sergeant?

This is PC Cowley from Queens Gardens.

Hello there. Stephen Briggs, breach of Section 27,

he's in the cells at Queens.

Absolutely battered, so that'll be tomorrow.

Yeah, he's well-monitored.

He's out of it, so it will definitely be later on tomorrow.

Okey-cokey.

Thank you very much, cheers, bye-bye.

That's him booked in.

It's another drunk-and-disorderly reveller off the streets of Hull.

Green tab and we're good to go,

we're good to go.

The spitting man was found guilty of breaching the Section 27 notice.

He was given a six-month conditional discharge and a £50 fine.

Every neighbourhood division in the Humberside police area

is run by an inspector.

Like all of his officers,

Inspector Bill Grieve has a particular passion

for community police work

Neighbourhood policing teams, we deal with lower-level crimes.

If you actually go around and ask people what annoys them most,

as you'll find there,

it's dog fouling,

littering...

and anti-social behaviour...

-You've been drinking alcohol in a no-drinking zone.

-I wasn't.

The CCTV has seen you do it.

..neighbour disputes...

It's like she's deliberately doing it.

..and also problems in schools.

You're going to stay at home this afternoon,

new start tomorrow morning, yeah?

Bill has witnessed the difference community policing has made.

I've been a police officer for 29 years

and I've been a neighbourhood inspector for six years

and it's been some of the best service I've had in the police force.

Definitely the way we've got it working in this city

and it's a great place to be, it really is.

Primarily we're made up of Police Community Support Officers.

PCSOs are the frontline face of community policing

and Sam Gregory holds regular surgeries to listen to the public.

How well she's known in the community.

She's got a fantastic rapport.

I mean, and the fact you only get out of a surgery

what you put into it.

You know, she could have just sat there

and expected people to come to see her, which might not occur,

but as they walked into the shop -

she had a good foot-fall, a great location -

she sparked up a conversation with the people

and that made them want to speak to her.

And they told her what was going on on the estate

and the problems that they were facing.

And perhaps information we wouldn't necessarily have got.

We've always expected people to come to us

and they won't necessarily do so,

so now we've got to up our game really and go to them.

Some people have complained in the past

that PCSOs are not as effective as fully-fledged police

but recently things have changed.

Some parts of the country with Police Community Support Officers have got very bad press

but they haven't had the full powers

that our Police Community Support Officers have.

They've everything the government entitled them to

and we'd give them more as well.

Police Community Support Officers, it's just tremendous,

the knowledge that they've gained, because they can identify people,

they know who they are, there's no anonymity in the community anymore.

Over at Pearson Park Police Station,

the police have launched a man-hunt to track down a man

alleged to have threatened a supermarket security guard.

He is of no fixed address

and their search for him has, so far, only turned up dead ends.

Has he been staying here at all?

No, cause I'm not really here.

But the team are now heading over to his mother's house,

an address he is known regularly to frequent.

His mother is innocent of committing any offence

but the police hope she may be able to help.

Key's in the door.

-Who is it?

-It's police.

-Hiya, is it BLEEP?

-We've come to see if Mark's here.

-He's not here.

-Is he not? Do you mind if we come and check?

-Come in.

The man's mother fully co-operates with the police

but she doesn't have any leads that will help them find him.

Yeah, and he didn't, he didn't.

Do you know where he might be staying? Where does he go or...?

Erm...

What about mates? Has he mentioned any mates to you?

-All right, we'll leave you to it then.

-All right.

-Thank you for your help.

-You're lucky I just got up anyway.

Thank you. If we get information

to say he's come back here then we might do but, I mean,

even if he rings you this morning,

and he tells you where he is, then obviously let us know.

-Then I'll just ring you.

-Yeah.

-All right.

-All right then.

-All right, thank you very much.

-Cheers.

-Take care, bye.

With the list of properties the team

believe he may be staying at all drawing a blank,

the team draws up a new search plan.

They decide to target pubs the man is known to drink at.

A trawl of a number of city centre drinking haunts

sees them once again meeting a dead end.

All right, I'll just leave you my details in case he comes in anyway.

They are about to call it a day

when an anonymous tip-off tells them the man is drinking

at a show bar in the city centre.

Fantastic, thank you.

They're in BLEEP now, apparently.

BLEEP pub, which is just down the road

and then they're going to BLEEP pub shortly.

We're going to go to BLEEP, yes.

Not wanting to give him the chance of drinking up and escaping,

they head straight to the venue.

On entering they are told the suspect is in the toilets

and they make a beeline to arrest him.

The wanted man is found hiding in a cubicle.

He is quickly cuffed and read his rights.

Whilst we're here, I'm going to stick the handcuffs on you.

Mark, at the moment you're under arrest for shop theft,

threats to kill and breach of your anti-social behaviour order, OK?

You do not have to say anything but it may harm your defence

if you do not mention, when questioned, something which you later rely on in court,

anything you do say may be given in evidence. Do you understand that?

-Do you have anything on you that you shouldn't have?

-No.

Nothing in your pockets? No sharps...?

I'm going to give you a cursory search,

to check you haven't got anything to harm yourself or my colleagues, all right?

I'm just going to tighten them handcuffs.

Well, I can't discuss it with you.

You'll be spoken to about it on interview, all right?

The man seems surprised that the team were able to track him down.

It's going to be dealt with today then?

Should be, all the paperwork's done.

-You haven't got knives or anything like that, have you?

-Nothing.

You've had stuff like that on you before, haven't you?

-I thought you had.

-What?

-I thought you had in the past.

-No.

Phone...

..lighter.

Right, I'm happy with that, for now.

With the checks completed,

the man is now ready to be taken away into custody.

Back at the station,

the man will be questioned about the incident at the supermarket

and the police will decide if any charges are to be brought.

On the way out, he gives his girlfriend a last kiss goodbye.

The relentless searching for the man paid off...

Do you want to jump in?

..showing just how determined and tenacious

the neighbourhood team can be when it comes to getting their man.

The man received six months imprisonment

for the offences of shoplifting, breach of an ASBO

and the commission of another offence.

No further action was taken in relation to the threats to kill

that were alleged to have been made to the security guard.

Across the country, the neighbourhood teams try to ensure

that a good night out doesn't turn bad.

Drunk guy just tried to push me around and I just avoided him,

didn't want to get into any fight!

But, yeah, I mean, especially on a Friday and Saturday nights,

after late nights, you face a problem if you're in the town.

If you're coming out of a club and, you know, these clashes occur,

you know, they, sort of, lead to violence,

then I think just having the police on the streets,

you know, often helps to, sort of, to quell these issues.

Fighting, arguing, swearing, rolling around on the floor,

being sick...using, making a toilet of the place.

Gareth and Kat's patrol leads them to finding a woman

who is seriously inebriated.

Do you want an ambulance for her?

Yes, please. Can we get one?

Just get her a sec, I'll just tell him to pack it in.

Er, Hotel Ibis, please.

Both the girl and her boyfriend are intoxicated

but Gareth and Kat need to make sure it's just alcohol that's to blame.

Is it just drink she's had tonight or has she had any drugs?

Anything like that?

-Just drunk?

-Yes.

Does she normally drink?

-Sometimes, but out of a year like, you know.

-What's her name?

Tell her she's drunk.

She's not dying, you're not going to lose her. All right?

You've both just had a little bit too much to drink, haven't you?

Gareth thinks the girl needs to see a doctor.

-She'll probably have to go to hospital, all right?

-OK, all right.

Where have you come from for the night?

-Where do you live?

-S...

In where?

No problem, I'll speak to you when you've thrown up.

BLEEP, stay there for me.

You all right, mate?

Yeah, BLEEP, face that way, if you're going to be sick,

I don't want it on my boots!

The pair have clearly overindulged this evening

and their health is the top concern.

Gareth is taking no chances,

so radios through for an ambulance to take the girl to hospital.

-OK?

-Yeah.

-Good.

-Thank you very much.

That's quite all right.

For Gareth, scenes like this are an all too common occurrence.

Yes, please, we'd best have an ambulance to the back side of...

'It is, yeah, it's very common to see,

'to see people highly intoxicated, unable to stand,'

unable to make their own way home.

They leave themselves open to criminal offences -

being robbed, being assaulted, things like that.

They just drink to excess, really, and people, that girl, there, doesn't really drink,

so she's had too much than what her body can cope with

and it's just reacted badly with her.

Within minutes, the paramedics are on scene.

This is a female, BLEEP, here from out of town,

staying at the Ibis Hotel.

Had, as you can probably tell, way too much alcohol.

Unsure whether she's taken anything else at the moment.

Friend says she's not on any medication.

Come on, up you get. Come on, up!

-Stand.

-There we go, m'darling.

-Yes.

As his girlfriend is taken away, the man puts in a cheeky request.

Say again?

They're not going to take you to the Ibis, mate. They're not a taxi!

They'll be taking her to Hull Royal.

Watch where you're going.

They're not a taxi service, they're a very busy ambulance service.

Every time an ambulance is deployed for somebody that's intoxicated,

it's rather than dealing with a more serious incident

but, unfortunately, for them, we don't adhere to their requests!

As the couple are taken away in the ambulance,

Gareth receives an update from the paramedics.

They've said that it does just appear to be the amount of alcohol

that she's consumed in the night -

not being able to withstand it in her body.

They've taken her off to Hull Royal now, on blues and twos,

where she'll be booked in and she'll remain for the evening,

and get assessed there,

and she'll be discharged at some point in the morning.

Big headache -

that's the only medical problem she'll have in the morning!

As we've already seen,

the neighbourhood teams deal with the problems

excessive alcohol consumption can cause on a daily basis.

In Humberside, they've decided not to just tackle it on the streets

but take the issue into the classroom.

Today Sergeant Jim Main has come to the Frederick Gough School

to speak to a class of youngsters.

Today he'll be talking to you about community policing, really,

and why and how the police deal with certain things.

OK, I'm Sergeant James Main, I'm a neighbourhood sergeant for Scunthorpe South.

What sort of actions and what sort of roles

do you think we play in the community?

Young people, well-behaved, nice young people,

but you do get a small proportion, as you do in adults,

that cause us issues and cause us problems

but drinking on the streets is a big one...

The blurry goggles are there to show kids how drink can dull your senses

and make you unaware of what you're doing,

which can easily lead to getting into trouble with the police.

Hello, there's people with weird glasses on outside my house!

THE PUPILS LAUGH

Jim gets the young lad to step into the copper's shoes

and asks him how he would deal with a bunch of drunken youths

hanging outside someone's house.

I'm going to talk to the householder,

see what all the problems are,

and then I'm going to speak to the kids outside,

ask them to move on, and if they don't move on

then I'll get someone to forcibly move them on.

Right, so you can always call for back-up, you're absolutely right.

You go and speak to those young people first.

Jim explains that, even with trouble-makers,

the police have to exercise care and caution...

We've got a complaint against,

that you've been causing some loud noises and chucking...

You've got a duty of care, OK?

That gentleman, there, could well step out into traffic...

..and the whole community policing approach

is a message the kids seem to pick up on and engage with.

'It shows what they're really like.'

They can give you support, like,

if you're drunk they don't just, like, send you off and everything,

they can, like, help you home and help your parents.

Most people think the police are just in the way all the time

but they're actually helping the community.

I think we need to give Sergeant Main a round of applause.

-THEY APPLAUD

-The visit has gone down well

and is another example of the neighbourhood police team

forging new ties with even the youngest members of the community.

Day and night, the neighbourhood teams are working

to make the streets a safer place

but trouble is never far away.

And how fast they react to it, and the results they score,

determines if they continue to get the support of the local residents.

Coming up next time...

..the neighbourhood team try to keep the streets free from teenage drinkers...

I'm going to ask you all to leave the city centre

-and not come back tonight.

-All right.

..the fight against suspected drug dealers

selling the hard stuff from home continues...

It feels to be about 4oz there, Mark. What's the current value?

..and a wave of burglaries sees the police taking action

to catch the thieves and reassure the public.

They've been trying to get in and they've broke the lock off.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd