County Durham and Darlington Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Joy Allen will scrutinise the work to tackle alcohol-related anti-social behaviour in her next public accountability meeting, due to take place on Thursday, 28 July.

Public accountablity meetings enable the PCC to hold the Chief Constable and Durham Constabulary to account for policing and identify where improvement is needed. They were developed by Commissioner Allen as part of her commitment to delivering transparency and openness on behalf of the public.

Each meeting considers a specific theme, identified by the Commissioner in her Police and Crime Plan.  Local residents and businesses are invited to pose questions to the force via the PCC at each meeting under separate themes.

Commissioner Joy Allen said: “In response to public opinion I prioritised tackling anti-social behaviour and supporting those unfortunate enough to be affected by this type of behaviour.

“That is why I have appointed an Anti-social Behaviour Champion who focuses on performance in tackling ASB and the service provided to victims. I do understand that being subjected to any type of anti-social behaviour can be incredibly upsetting and traumatic.

“This meeting will focus on alcohol-related anti-social behaviour, which I know can disturb life in our communities, or ruin a good night out.  I am urging people to send in their questions on the way in which the police are working to tackle the problem, which will then be answered at the highest level during the meeting.

“All meetings are recorded which enables our communities to see for themselves how the accountability process works.”

In previous public accountability meetings, the Commissioner has scrutinised proposals for a centralised custody facility, offroad bikes, violence against women and girls and processes to report crime or contacting the police. Recordings of the meetings are available via YouTube.

The PCC is encouraging anyone with questions relating to alcohol-related anti-social behaviour to submit them via email to: general.enquiriespcc@durham-pcc.gov.uk before 5pm on 16th July 2022.

The meeting will be available to view on YouTube post session:  https://www.youtube.com/user/DurhamPCC