MP Pow attends meeting to discuss Taunton anti-social behaviour issues

The roundtable was prompted by an increase in incidents over the summer, with shops broken into, windows smashed, and items stolen leaving some local business leaders thousands of pounds out of pocket and staff also feeling for their safety.

Over the summer, the glass frontage of the Brazz restaurant at the Castle Hotel was smashed whilst customers were enjoying their breakfast inside; the Rocket and Bird was broken into; windows at the Little Wine Shop were damaged and The Shed Café in Taunton was also broken into on two separate occasions.

MP Rebecca Pow said: “It was a really constructive meeting and very useful to all come together to work on coordinated efforts to tackle this issue.

“Key areas raised included: the potential for the council to use the powers available to it to more effectively tackle antisocial behaviour; closer working with the community police teams; specific town centre security representation; ensuring CCTV cameras are in the most relevant locations; and knowledge sharing amongst the stakeholders.

“Particular concerns were raised about how to tackle those allegedly responsible for the anti-social behaviour incidents including the homelessness sector and a youth element.

“All were unanimous in agreeing. It was a much-needed and constructive meeting and we agreed to a follow-up meeting to report on progress on the way forward.

“This work builds on the Prime Minister’s commitment to address this issue through his recently launched anti-social behaviour plan.”

Gideon Amos (Image: Contributed)

Gideon Amos, the local Liberal Democrat Parliamentary candidate, said: "The Conservatives’ MP here, along with the rest of the government, have cut council funds by 60 per cent but, despite these limited funds, our town council is working on plans to increase security in the town centre and bring forward the provision of additional CCTV and street marshals on Friday and Saturday evenings.

“This is all the more vital given the government cut the police by a staggering 20,000 officers in 2019.

“Actions speak louder than words on this - so will the MP back my call for more bobbies on the beat in Taunton and Wellington and if so by when?

“The reality is they’ve cut resources to frontline services time and time again and to now complain about the consequences shows they just don’t get it”.

Those attending the roundtable included: the Taunton Chamber of Commerce; Avon and Somerset Police; Somerset County Council; Taunton Town Council; Visit Somerset; Taunton Pubwatch, and Ark Inspire; together with many business owners who recounted their experiences.

Tom Deakin, the leader of Taunton Town Council, said he is “very sad that small, independent businesses were affected” speaking at a council meeting earlier this week.

He said the town council is looking at “options to make it [the town centre] more secure”.

CCTV cameras, and street marshals on Friday and Saturday evenings “to have more ears on the ground” are the ideas that could be explored by the council, he added.