Commissioner's Update - July

5th August 2013

The beginning of the month started on a very positive note; attending the Force's Long Service and Good Conduct awards. These ceremonies are very humbling and highlight the great work people are doing across the Force, as well as the impressive quality of officers and staff we are so fortunate to have here in Gwent.

It was also a pleasure to welcome ACC Lorraine Bottomley to Gwent Police. Lorraine took up post on 1st July and has already settled very well into the Force and Chief Officer Team. I wish her all the best with her new role, with her wealth of experience I believe she will truly be a valuable addition to the team.

I look forward to working with her to ensure that Gwent Police continues to provide the best possible service to our local communities. I welcomed the opportunity to attend the Welsh Affairs Committee this month to discuss how the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner is working in Gwent and to tell the panel about all the good work going on. It also provided me with the opportunity to meet up with the Dyfed Powys and North Wales Commissioners and the South Wales Deputy Commissioner, to share thoughts, views and ideas for better and more efficient working across Wales.

I was delighted to be a guest speaker at the launch of Gwent Integrated Family Support Service - a great new service that brings together partners to strengthen support to vulnerable families. I have also been very pleased to attend community events which enables me to meet with as many people as possible.

My Deputy and I have attended a number of group meetings and community events, including the Big Cheese which was a fantastic day and a very useful meeting with Community leaders in Newport. Although I have a very busy schedule, meeting with different groups of people to discuss what matters to them is a priority and so useful in shaping my plans for the future.

The month ended with a trip to North Wales, Colwyn Bay to be precise, for an All Wales Policing Group meeting - this is a quarterly meeting where all the Welsh Commissioners and Chief Constables get together to discuss all strategic policing and policy issues in Wales, and identify commonalities where they can work together for the good of residents and victims of crime. We continue to hold the Public Strategy and Performance Board meeting on a monthly basis - this is the meeting where I hold the Chief Constable to account.

We are still encouraging the public to submit their questions and attend - questions can be submitted at least seven days beforehand.

If you wish to contact me for any reason, or if you have any comments or suggestions about policing in the Gwent area you can e-mail me: commissioner@gwent.pnn.police.uk, telephone me 01633 642200, fax me 01633 643095 or write to me at the address below:

Ian Johnston
Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner
Police Headquarters
Croesyceiliog
Cwmbran
Gwent
NP44 2XJ

You can also follow my office on Twitter @gwentpcc which provides day to day updates of my work on your behalf, or Facebook.