14/3/2008We want the East End to be remembered for gold medals in 2014...not gang violence
FOR generations Glasgow's East End has been known as one of the most violent and crime-ridden areas in any British city.
Gang warfare and the problems of social deprivation have blighted places like Easterhouse, Shettleston and Parkhead.
But a major police initiative launched in the area three months ago has succeeded where others have failed - it has led to a 9-per cent drop in crime figures.
Superintendent Michelle Martin, who is in charge of policing the entire East End, said the key to the success lay in simple, back-to-basics police work, with more officers on the beat.
"We patrol the streets, visit every single licensed premises in the area, and stop and search every person we suspect may be carrying drugs or a weapon, " she said.
Supt Martin said part of the thinking behind the GBP800,000 crime-fighting campaign was to clean up the East End for the 2014 Commonwealth Games.
She added: "The Commonwealth Games is a goal and we want to be proud of the East End.
"We want to be remembered for something like producing the first gold medallist of the Games, rather than what the area is usually known for.
"I think the Games bring with them a tide and a momentum. It's time to invest in the area, to make a difference, change the culture, break the circle."
An athletes' village for the Commonwealth Games is proposed at Dalmarnock, while two of the main venues will be Celtic's Parkhead stadium and a new indoor sports arena and velodrome planned next door.
Supt Martin said the aim of the crime crackdown - the Enhanced Policing Plan - was to change deep-seated and age-old cultures and attitudes.
She said it had been made possible by an injection of cash and extra manpower.
Supt Martin said: "The west of Scotland is a violent area. And this division is one of the busiest - disorder and violence, that's my core business.
"We have adopted a more joined-up thinking approach to problem-solving and tried to involve other agencies and the public in finding solutions."
In the three months since the campaign launch, crime figures in the area have dropped by 9-per cent and reported incidents by 15-per cent.
She said the impetus for scheme came from a cash award from the government's Regeneration Fund following the success of an anti-crime crackdown in Glasgow city centre.
The money coincided with the merging of the East End's two police sub-divisions - in Easterhouse and Shettleston - with Supt Martin put in charge.
She said: "What this has enabled me to do is get more officers on the street and to put strategies in place for more effective policing of the area.
"We were able to identify hotspots, what the problems were and who was causing them.
"We also took time to ask the public what they felt needed addressing and not surprisingly they told us what we already knew - youth crime and gang-related disorder.
"The hotspots are places like Parkhead, Tollcross, Wellhouse, Barlanark, Springboig and Easterhouse and we have action plans put in place for them.
"As well as reducing crime, the big part of all this for me is reassuring the public. I want to stop gang warfare and territorialism.
"Once we have identified ringleaders and people on the periphery we need to take measures to divert them into other activities.
For some that might mean jail. "Just because your father or uncle used to be in a gang doesn't mean to say you have to be in one - that's one of the big messages to young people.
"It is not easy at times. We are dealing with a culture that has been there for a long time but we are trying to bring a change of attitudes and behaviour and that is the hard stuff.
"It does not happen overnight and we have to keep chipping away and take little steps."
Baillieston councillor Jim Coleman said the East End was the obvious place for the initiative as a follow-up to the high-profile city centre anti- crime campaign.
He said: "What we wanted to do was test it in another part of town - and where better than the East End.
"The results are good. And if it proves a success then the other four police divisions are entitled to say they want some of that cash.
"It is important we have the campaign independently analysed so there are no false figures and we can present the results to mainline funding agencies.
"The East End has been a deprived area but a lot is coming together there at the same time.
"There's the Clyde Gateway project, the new road running through the area and the Commonwealth Games.
"They are not talk any more, they are happening and this initiative has come at the right time."
Jan 12, 2008
What plans are there for enhancing the Parkhead area ringed by London Road, Springfield Road, Gales Street, Kinnear Road and Boness Street?