Eastbrook and Rush Green

ASB linked to Barking and Dagenham College (Rush Green)

A reoccurring commitment on the team’s agenda due to the annual turnaround of students, anti-social behaviour (ASB) from a small number of students attending Rush Green’s Barking and Dagenham College will be monitored over the coming months.

Historic hotspots, including the Thorntons Farm Avenue alley and the communal areas of the flats in Dagenham Road, will continue seeing patrols, while newly emerging gathering points, including Fourth Avenue, will see a greater presence. Cannabis use and groups obstructing the footway will draw much of the team’s focus, while also ensuring the general safety of both the students and those living on, and passing through, Rush Green.

Motor vehicle ASB and crime (ward-wide)

The broad subject of vehicle crime and vehicle-enabled anti-social behaviour (ASB) will be tackled heading into the New Year, with theft, dangerous parking and speeding being explored.

The ward’s previous priority surrounding vehicle ASB outside Rush Green Primary in Dagenham Road, primarily poor parking, will continue to be monitored, with an emphasis on the start of the school day. Along with anticipated assistance from Barking and Dagenham Council’s parking enforcement department, the team will initially look to advise parents parking without courtesy before considering local authority-led measures. Speeding, which has previously impacted residents of Gorseway and Parish Fields, will also be looked into, again leaning on support from the council. Finally, theft of and theft from vehicle offences will see a greater focus, directing advice to owners of at-risk vehicles based on current trends, as well as looking for items of potential value left on display and notifying owners. The team’s exclusive ‘VehicleMania’ initiative will incorporate both aspects.

Violence (set by the Met Police)

Both robbery and Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) will shape the team’s approach to removing opportunities for violence on the ward throughout the winter months. Central Park, often used as a cut-through by school children making their way to and from school, will continue to see coverage. This presence will also look to reassure females traveling through the park. Robbery around Barking and Dagenham College will also monitored as part of the team’s college-focused priority around anti-social behaviour (ASB).

Meanwhile, the ward’s other green spaces, including the Eastbrookend Country Park and Fels Field, will also see a greater presence to boost confidence among those visiting the parks. The team have provided dedicated patrols across the ward’s open spaces throughout the year, including over 10 miles in October, and will continue to do so into the New Year.