This week five vehicles were seized and ten fines were issued

“Nuisance” garages in Leytonstone had a terrible time this week, as Waltham Forest Council paid them extra attention as part of a new trial for neighbourhood policing.

In a tweet earlier this week, a council spokesperson said the crackdown had resulted in the seizure of five vehicles and the issuing of ten fines and seven “waste-related notices”.

An accompanying video shows an offending vehicle, that had reportedly been abandoned in the area, being lifted off the road under the supervision of council officers.

This week we’ve been cracking down on nuisance garages in South Leytonstone – issued 7 waste related notices, 10 PCNs and removed 5 vehicles! Working with @MPSWForest on #SafeStreetsWF ???????????? pic.twitter.com/0siVhSWkqT
— Waltham Forest Council (@wfcouncil) April 20, 2023

South Leytonstone is currently receiving extra attention from police and council officers as part of a trial for a new style of neighbourhood policing, which began at the start of March and will continue for three months.

The “Safe Streets” pilot is taking place in Cathall and Chingford Mount but could expand to the whole of the borough if it proves a success.

Speaking previously to the Echo, the leader of Waltham Forest’s police force, Detective Chief Superintendent Simon Crick, said the trial will see the council and police take their already “very close” relationship “to the next level” in the hopes that issues commonly reported to the police can instead be solved with council intervention.

He said: “[The police is] no longer the agency that can solve all the issues in the community. For example, if there’s drug-dealing in the stairwell of a block of flats, it might be that there needs to be a more effective front door.

“Instead of a delay getting the council to deal with [an issue], we can have a fast conversation to get the relevant services out. Rather than imposing a solution, it’s about going to the community, asking what issues they have and trying to make their lives better.”

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