HOTSPOT policing designed to reduce anti-social behaviour with targeted neighbourhood police and street marshal patrols in areas with the highest levels of crime was a “great success” last year.

The initiative, which started in 2024, has so far delivered 45,214 hours of additional patrols in towns and cities across Devon and Cornwall.

Based on reports of antisocial behaviour received by the police and partners, hotspot policing is concentrated on Bodmin, Camborne, Newquay, Penzance, St Austell, Truro as well as in Devon. Neighbourhood policing teams across Devon and Cornwall also conduct their own localised response to reports of antisocial behaviour.

The scheme is made possible through £2,000,000 Home Office funding and an additional £500,000 secured by the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner to support street marshal patrols.

Information received from the public about what is troubling their communities has been key to delivering the targeted policing.

Chief inspector Dominic Nicholls for Devon and Cornwall Police said: “Reports of antisocial behaviour go not just to the police but also to local authorities, housing associations and other organisations, so a joined-up response is vital.

“Our Neighbourhood Policing Teams are the key to delivering our response. We use the Hotspot Policing model which gathers intelligence and allows us to target our resources where they can have the maximum effect.

“Beat patrols, supported by dedicated Neighbourhood Support teams, helps us maintain a visible presence in the community and address the underlying causes of crime, such as social disorder and public nuisances, and prevent future incidents.”

Officers used a range of solutions to end ongoing antisocial behaviour and to prevent further occurrences during 2025.

Not all interventions require criminal proceeding and include closure orders on troublesome residential properties, Public Space Protection Orders, educational visits such as police in Cornwall hosting sessions on antisocial behaviour to over 500 primary school students, and working with the local community.

Police and crime commissioner for Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly Alison Hernandez said: “I have made it a priority to tackle this major cause of distress and criminality and backed it up with £300,000 funding for street marshals in 2025.

“When my office carries-out surveys asking people which issue they would most like the police to tackle they mention ‘anti-social behaviour’ more often than any other crime-type.

“As well as the immediate harassment, alarm or distress it causes to people it can also be associated with criminal causes such as drug dealing. The problem can't be tackled alone by the police, councils have a huge part to play with their own civil powers, and that’s why my office has initiatives such as Street Focus which encourages vital partnership working between agencies.”