Bolton police boss on work taking place in the town

Ch Supt Stephanie Parker, the acting divisional commander, said that the local force's biggest priority at the moment is improving their services to victims, which she said means getting to victims quickly, undertaking a quality investigation, and obtaining better outcomes for victims.

Ch Supt Parker admitted that they are currently facing a challenge with the night-time economy and as a result have a dedicated number of patrols out every Friday and Saturday to deal with anti-social behaviour and violence.

A number of high-profile operations are already taking place in the town centre, including making it safer for women.

She said: “The town centre remains a challenge for us.

“We are trying to clean up Bolton town centre and make it a safe place for people to visit and still have fun again without violence.

“We know about it, and we are trying to address it, working closely with the council.

“It’s a joint agency operation.”

Chief Superintendent Stephanie Parker explained all (Image: Newsquest)

The officer said domestic violence was an issue and in response Operation Lioness was created across Greater Manchester to give a voice to women and girls.

Ch Supt Parker added: “It’s a dedicated resource based in the town centre over a weekend, strictly working to keep vulnerable women and girls safe.”

And it is easier for those at risk of domestic violence to get help.

A safeguarding unit has also opened in Bolton, where specialist officers are able to speak to domestic abuse victims.

She added: “If the incident isn’t ongoing but they want to see the police, they can make an appointment, and we have slots every day to suit the victim’s needs.

“These incidents will be investigated by our specialist domestic abuse officers.”

There has been an increase in sexual offences reported and Ch Supt Parker explained that this may be as a result of the high visibility in the town centre and people "feeling comfortable and confident” reporting it, but the slight increase in these offences is monitored on a daily basis, with action taken to reduce offending.

Bolton Police Station (Image: Newsquest)

And the performance data for Bolton district showed that in the last three months several offenders have been charged with serious sexual offences.

Bolton police also work closely with Fortalice when they are experiencing high peak demand for domestic violence incidents.

Ch Supt Parker added: “The volunteers will go out on patrol with the officers responding where they will get support straight away, with instant advice so we can respond effectively to what’s important to for the victims.”

Ch Supt Parker also said that it was especially important for the victims to not only get an effective service, but that they get outcomes as well.

She added: “We want that quality to be there as well, and to get outcomes such as charges or arrests, and on some occasions where appropriate restorative justice.

“We need to start listening to what the victims want and get those outcomes.”

Whilst she acknowledged that they don’t always get it right, Ch Supt Parker said they are “trying to make a difference”.

There is far more to the crime figures (Image: Newsquest)

The district has seen an 11 per cent decrease in residential burglaries in the past three months, with personal robbery also decreasing by 10 per cent.

Theft from person has also decreased by 1.2 per cent, as well as the district also seeing an increase in the solved rate in the past three months.

Whilst ONS data shows a slight increase in thefts, this relates to a set of data for the last year, rather than the performance data which the district is measured on every month.

Ch Supt Parker added: “There has been a decrease for serious acquisitive crime over the past three months.

“We are proactively out on the streets dealing with criminals.”

Vehicle offences have also decreased by 6.9 per cent in the past three months.

Ch Supt Parker puts this success down to the recently established neighbourhood priority crime team that deals with all of these crimes, dealing with victims, seeking out offenders and bringing them to justice.

In addition to officers dealing with violent and serious acquisitive crime, which is classed as theft and robbery, Ch Supt Parker explained how officers additionally deal with a whole range of social problems that include assisting with mental health related incidents and helping locate missing people.

Ch Supt Parker said that one offender can commit more than one crime, or they may be known to carry out a certain crime in the area on numerous occasions for example.

This has resulted in a massive reduction in certain crimes, often showing how figures can be skewed.

She says that there are many reasons for increases in crimes, with one of the main reasons being that Greater Manchester Police now accurately record the number of crimes, and the reopening of the night-time economy following the pandemic.

Another reason  may be down to some of the crimes reported only be a low-level version, but this still has to be recorded in one of the categories as the reason, for example.

The officer said the restructure and increased levels of staffing at the Bolton district is also having an impact because they have more capacity to proactively police the streets, deal with criminals, and provide a better service to the public.

An increase in their divisional tasking team that are dedicated to locating and arresting wanted people has proved successful, with an average of 500 offenders a month being arrested and brought into the recently reopened custody unit in Bolton.  

She added: “Our approach to the targeting and managing of offenders has improved and is improving.

“The structure and leadership is in a far better place than two years ago, and the removal of special measures is an example of how far we have progressed.

“We can see improvements made consistently and steadily in serious acquisitive crime, in our response to violent crime being significant.

“We know we have a long way to go we are determined to tackle our highest harm offenders and domestic abuse remains a priority for us.

“The officers work tirelessly to make a difference in our communities, and we feel proud that our hard work is starting to reflect in the community.

“We just feel proud that this is reflected for the community.

“At the heart of this we want to make Bolton a safe place that it needs and deserves to be.”

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If you have a story and something you would like to highlight in the community, please email me at jasmine.jackson@newsquest.co.uk or DM me on Twitter @JournoJasmine.