Community Safety Partnerships (CSPs) in South Cambridgeshire have received a £730,000 funding boost to tackle cycle thefts and antisocial behaviour.
Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Darryl Preston invested in the county's six CSPs, which are made up of council, fire, police and community representatives.
The funding will be used to respond to issues such as antisocial behaviour, fly-tipping and road safety, as well as helping to divert young people away from offending in the first place to prevent nuisance behaviour from escalating into serious crime.
Some of the commissioner's funding has paid for problem-solving coordinators to work with communities and partners for the next three years to resolve issues.
These efforts are boosted by the PCC's Safer Communities Fund, which allows CSPs to apply for a grant of up to £5k to alleviate common community problems.
In South Cambs, where many residents use bikes to commute to Cambridge, the CSP successfully applied for funding from the scheme to purchase 1,000 bike marking kits, which will help tackle increased bike thefts following complaints by residents and parish councils.
Through the national BikeRegister database, neighbourhood police officers and the CSP organised bike marking sessions across the area, to promote the reporting of cycle thefts and bikes being returned to their rightful owners.
The kits include lifetime registration to the database and a secure online account where owners can amend bike or address details.
Darryl said: "The success of this project speaks for itself and is just a snapshot of the positive work underway by our CSPs to respond effectively to the localised and persistent problems that cause misery for residents.
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"The police cannot tackle these issues alone, and this investment recognises that partnership working is crucial to delivering a meaningful impact on public safety.
"When communities stand united against crime and ASB, the solutions are much easier to identify and implement and deliver maximum value.
"I am grateful to all our CSPs and wider community partners for embracing this opportunity and working harder than ever to protect local people and respond swiftly to the issues that cause them harm."
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