Tackling violent crime
The Home Office launched the Serious Violence Strategy in 2018 in response to national increases of serious violence.
The strategy promoted a ‘public health approach’ for tackling and preventing serious violence. This focuses on working with communities in a defined area to create short-term and long-term solutions using intelligence, data and evidence of what works.
Greater Manchester set up the Violence Reduction Unit (VRU). This unit includes representation from the Community Safety Partnership and has agreed priorities that can be found in the Greater Manchester Serious Violence Action Plan.
These priorities include:
- Supporting an improved criminal justice response to all forms of serious violence.
- Supporting voluntary and community sector organisations to deliver activities and interventions in areas of highest need.
- Ensuring that victims, families and communities affected by violence are effectively supported through a place-based offer.
- Ensuring victims of crime receive appropriate and timely support.
Manchester's Public Health Approach
Tackling and preventing serious violence in Manchester has been directed by the Public Health Approach to Serious Violence Group since February 2019.
This group includes representation from:
- Public Health.
- Manchester City Council.
- Greater Manchester Police.
- Voluntary and community sector organisations.
- Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust.
- Offender management services.
- Greater Manchester Mental Health Trust.
The Public Health Approach in Manchester concentrates on 3 key areas, particularly focusing on young people either at risk of or involved in serious violence:
- Early intervention and prevention.
- Support and protection.
- Disruption and enforcement.
In each of these areas, initiatives and activities have been developed and supported in 2020 and 2021. These are available alongside the universal and specialist services.
For example, Operation Luka places police officers on the streets at certain locations and times to target offenders and engage with those at risk of being drawn into crime.
This work is linked to early help and safeguarding services to identify young people who may need help and support. The operation has highlighted the importance of identifying young people with vulnerabilities in the city centre.
This approach has had some positive outcomes where young people were connected with help and support services for some underlying issues that draw them to the city centre and other areas.
In the lockdown period police operations shifted away from the city centre and into neighbourhoods in response to the changing picture of incidents in the city. It then returned to the city centre as lockdown measures were eased.
Find out about tackling domestic violence in Manchester.