Cleveland Police vow to tackle domestic abuse and organised crime in new operation over the summer

Police have launched a new operation with a focus on protecting vulnerable people and pledging more officers to tackle serious violence.
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Cleveland Police, which has recently come in for criticism, says the public will see an improvement under Operation Phoenix.

The force says it will see more help for vulnerable people including domestic violence victims and will target serious and organised crime.

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Assistant Chief Constable Steve Graham said: “The summer is traditionally a time of increased demand for the police service and Operation Phoenix is being put in place to manage that demand directly through increased protection for vulnerable people and a focussed approached to tackling serious and organised crime.

“We’re doing this in two ways; by changing the way we work and by freeing up resources to support the work of our front line officers and staff.

“We are focussing over the next three months in a number of key areas and we are committed to delivering improvements over the summer, improvements communities rightly deserve and which will have a lasting effect.”

From Thursday, July18, officers working additional hours will staff dedicated cars to respond to domestic abuse calls which the force says will improve responses to victims on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays – peak times for such offences.

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Additional resources will also be put into catching suspects wanted for crimes, to be recalled to prison or bail breaches.

Additional resources have been pledged by Cleveland Police as part of this summer's Operation Phoenix.Additional resources have been pledged by Cleveland Police as part of this summer's Operation Phoenix.
Additional resources have been pledged by Cleveland Police as part of this summer's Operation Phoenix.

And operations aimed at disrupting organised crime will be carried out with raids on homes and businesses.

A number of crime prevention events are also taking place over the next three months with advice on burglaries, thefts from vehicles and community based crime.

Upcoming events in Hartlepool, include at Community Hub Central, in York Road, on Thursday, July 18, from 2pm-4pm, and on Wednesday, July 24, from 10am till 12pm.

Paul Payne, part of the seven-strong crime prevention team, said: “We have decided to take our expertise on the road where we can engage with thousands of people over the coming months.”