Voice of the Police and Crime Commissioner

Kent Police and Crime Commissioner Matthew Scott on his Police and Crime Plan and children's exposure to phones and social media

Editor’s note: Each month, we publish a guest column from one of Medway’s elected representatives, rotating between our MPs, council and opposition leaders, and the Police and Crime Commissioner. Today, we welcome Kent Police and Crime Commissioner Matthew Scott, who discusses his new Police and Crime Plan and the campaign to reduce children’s exposure to smartphones and social media.

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Voice of the Police and Crime Commissioner

by Matthew Scott

Kent Police and Crime Commissioner Matthew Scott

I have recently published my new Police and Crime Plan. It’s called ‘Cut Crime, Support Victims, Build Trust’ and will be the core mission of Kent Police for the next four years.

We have made significant progress together over the last nine years, but we must continue to improve our service to the people of Kent and those unfortunate enough to become victims of crime.

The plan is broken down into four priority areas.

We want to protect people by continuing the popular ‘hotspot patrols’ in areas with higher levels of violence and antisocial behaviour; there will be ongoing investment in the specialist units which target organised crime; new technology will be acquired to communicate with victims, and there will be an increase in proactive interventions for persistent offenders.

We will protect places by enhancing the Neighbourhood Policing Model, where named police officers have beat patrols in local areas, and there will be investment in the Rural Task Force and road safety patrols.

Protecting property is also a priority. Kent Police will visit burglary victims in a timely manner, and the force has signed up to the nationally recognised Retail Crime Action Plan to reduce shoplifting and retail crime. We’ll also maintain specialist capability to tackle the risk of cybercrime.

Productive partnerships to support victims will also be encouraged and supported: £4m will be spent on support services, and I’m working with the Kent Criminal Justice Board to try to reduce the distressing backlog in the county’s courts.

And, of course, it’s not just about dealing with crime, it’s also about preventing crime in the future.

There’s been a good deal in the news about young people and social media. There’s growing momentum behind the campaign to reduce children’s exposure to smartphones and social media, and more and more parents are signing a pledge not to buy smartphones for children until they are 14.

To draw attention to the risks I’ve launched Operation Screentime and been holding online safety sessions in schools, delivering advice to hundreds of students.

It has been well received, but the insights are fascinating. Whilst my recent Youth survey suggested that just over 31% of primary school pupils do not have a smartphone, nearly every Year 6 pupil we meet does. It seems the transition from Year 5 (aged 10) to Year 6 (aged 11) is when they are getting them, either for their 11th birthday or because they are being trusted to walk to school.

Now I understand this, but there are devices that allow calls, texts and GPS tracking without being full smartphones.

And it is at this age where the problems are starting. Once they have the phones, they acquire social media apps which they are too young to use (the recommended age for most social media apps is 13). In many cases, the parents know and encourage it - especially WhatsApp. Yet every school we have visited says WhatsApp groups are causing problems because what is happening outside school is spilling over into the classroom and the playground.

My Youth survey found about 30% of the country’s children have been bullied online, and shockingly, 15% admitted they’d bullied someone else. My Operation Screentime sessions warn youngsters about the lasting impact their digital footprint can have, as well as how to keep their passwords secure. We also encourage children to tell adults about any bullying rather than keep it to themselves, as far too many tell us they do.

We’ve been delivering the sessions right across the county and will continue to do so next term and next year too. This is something we must address now, for our children’s sakes.

You can read more about the Police and Crime Plan and my Internet Safety Campaign on my website.

Matthew Scott is the Police and Crime Commissioner for Kent.