A packed Royal British Legion in Manea last night with over 300 people coming at short notice to have their say to the Cambridgeshire Police Chief Constable Nick Dean, Fenland Area Commander Ben Martin and Police and Crime Commissioner Darryl Preston, reflected the strength of concern locally following the criminality witnessed at the weekend and wider worries on rural policing.
We heard from many of those directly affected, who set out the huge impact on their families, businesses and the community as a whole. The Chief Constable apologised and said that mistakes had been made and pledged that he would be following up on the lessons to be learnt with his senior officers. He also confirmed that the investigation to catch the criminals involved last weekend was a force wide priority, and that additional resources would be deployed this weekend and in future weekends given concerns about these criminals returning.
Specific points raised during the meeting included seeking answers on the resource deployment in Fenland last weekend, future updates on the force level investigation now underway, whether the police helicopter was called and why it was not deployed, issues around police call handling both at the weekend and with other recent events on farms, whether the fire engine locally had been damaged and contact with the fire service, the effectiveness of liaison with Norfolk police force, and what steps will be taken to prevent such criminality this weekend and in future weekends with additional resources allocated. There are also clear gaps in how quickly critical incidents are escalated within the police force to senior officers.
Given the seriousness of events last weekend, and the wider concerns particularly those shared many local farmers who spoke at the meeting, it was important to have the most senior policing figures in Manea within 48 hours to hear directly the strength of feeling felt locally. I am grateful to everyone who attended, and will be working with Cllr Charlie Marks, Cllr Tim Taylor and local councillors, the NFU, and residents to follow up on the points raised.
