Bournemouth Wire

By Ryan Hooper

New plans for a dedicated police patrol team are unveiled as Bournemouth is praised for it’s good crime record.

BOURNEMOUTH University is set to receive its own dedicated full-time police force to help combat crime on its Talbot campus.

A Police Community Support Officer will begin her new post on April 17, while plans are currently underway to link the University’s CCTV cameras to the central police control centre in the town.

The announcement backs up a pledge from PC Anita Finley, one of the University’s two part-time police officers, to keep crime at a low. Figures revealed by Wire under the Freedom of Information Act show there were 38 incidents reported to police on the Talbot campus during 2007. These include six of rowdy or inconsiderate behaviour, six thefts, four road accidents, and one missing person inquiry. And although the statistics are unable to gauge the number of unreported incidents, PC Finlay said she was pleased with the findings. She said: “I think Bournemouthhas got a really good reputation for low crime rates compared to other universities.

“The only issue is with bicycle thefts. It seems to be a real pain and something that is, unfortunately, always going to be there. “We are and will continue to do our best to stop it.” Police hold quarterly sessions on campus where students can have their bikes electronically marked, reducing the risk of theft. So far, more than 300 bikes have been tagged since the beginning of October, with a plan to conduct another session at the start of next term.

Valuables

PC Finlay also stressed the need for students to be more careful when working in the library. She said: “Some people will leave their laptops, purses, wallets, bags or other valuables by their desk when they are working – they will go off to the toilet or printer and discover them missing when they return. “We want to cut down on this, and help reduce the figures even more.” Further plans to create an onsite office for the university’s three police staff will be examined following the arrival of the new PCSO, whose responsibilities will include patrolling the campus, making herself known to the student community, and responding to incidents.