Key community safety priorities share £168,000 boost from Commissioner’s recovered Proceeds of Crime fund

14th February 2020

Tens of thousands of pounds in funding from the County’s Police and Crime Commissioner have been allocated to help address key community safety priorities across the region.

Mark Burns-Williamson, West Yorkshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC), granted just under £168,000 from his Safer Communities Fund to 35 groups tackling important issues such as burglary, road safety and cyber crime.

The grants from the fund, which is financed through money recovered from criminals by West Yorkshire Police and prosecutors under the Proceeds of Crime Act, were distributed at an awards evening in Wakefield last night (13/02).

Projects funded include:

• Hope for Justice in Bradford who received £5,925 for their Care and Support for Victims of Modern Slavery project.
• The Orange Box in Calderdale who received £6000 for their project to support young people.
• SKY Positive Minds from Kirklees who received £6000 for their Project Aspire initiative to support victims of “honour” based abuse.
• Leeds based Get Technology Together C.I.C. who received £1885 for their Cybercrime Vigilance project.
• West Yorkshire Police’s Wakefield District Early Intervention Team Sports Coaching who received £6000 for their project to support young people and divert them away from crime and anti-social behaviour.

These latest awards mean that Mark has now distributed over £2.96m to around 692 projects across the county as part of the Safer Communities Fund.

Mark Burns-Williamson, said: “I am delighted to be able to continue to distribute these much needed funds to community safety projects across West Yorkshire.

“Whilst this latest round was open to applications covering any of the priorities in my Police and Crime Plan, I was particularly looking for projects with a focus around road safety, burglary, "honour" based abuse, cyber crime, human trafficking and modern slavery or missing people. Analysis of the Fund showed that we had slightly fewer applications in these areas so it is something that I am happy to see being addressed.

“The fund is so close to the £3 million mark now which is a real milestone. It’s also a true testament to the work of West Yorkshire Police and prosecutors in recovering the ill-gotten gains of criminals, ensuring that crime doesn’t pay and allowing the fund to continue which as ever I want to show my appreciation for with a big thank you for all the hard work that goes into achieving such results.”

West Yorkshire Police, Assistant Chief Constable, Catherine Hankinson said: “It is really pleasing to see these community based projects receiving the crucial funds they need to make a difference across what are priority areas of policing.

“We cannot address these themes in isolation and it is only by working together that we can deliver a truly effective service for victims and witnesses.

“It should not be underestimated just how far this money goes to changing people’s lives and enhancing their experiences throughout the criminal justice system.”

The latest round of the Safer Communities Fund is currently open for applications. This time round the fund is asking for groups who want to help tackle crime and anti-social behaviour to apply for a grant of up to £6000.

Projects seeking funding have up to mid-day (12:00 noon) on Friday 13 March 2020 to apply.

To find out more about the fund and apply visit www.westyorkshire-pcc.gov.uk/safer-communities-fund or call the office on 01924 294000.