Annual Report 2021/22

Safe and Well

By 2050 people in Southend-on-Sea feel safe in all aspects of their lives and are well enough to live fulfilling lives.

  • residents feel safe and secure in their homes, neighbourhoods and across the city.
  • everyone has a good quality, sustainable home that meets their needs.
  • we protect and improve the quality of life for everyone in our community with focused support for those most vulnerable.

The council has worked with its partners to keep people safe and well over the past year.

In February we retained the Purple Flag accreditation for our evening and night-time economy. The Association of Town and City Management awarded Southend-on- Sea Purple Flag Status. They did so in recognition of the city’s offer of a safe and enjoyable night out with a vibrant and diverse mix of dining, entertainment and culture. This is the ninth year in a row we have been given the award.

Operation Heatwave ran throughout the year to make sure that visitors and residents enjoyed a safe time in Southend-on-Sea.

Medical contractors, Triple L, provided first aid and triage in the city between April and December. Triple L provided two crewed ambulances. This enabled medical teams to attend seafront and city-wide incidents.

Several infrastructure projects have supported safety in the city during the year:

  • the internal CCTV system at the Forum has been replaced, and in the city centre existing CCTV cameras upgraded and new cameras installed. This is part of the Eurovia works programme, a significant investment of over £2 million
  • Leigh and Thorpe Bay Rotary Clubs and the Carli Lansley Foundation donated, installed and maintained four defibrillators along Southend-on-Sea seafront
  • local artists painted 48 multi-purpose blocks. These have been installed on the seafront to provide extra safety and seating
  • we approved the introduction of the new Leigh Public Space Protection Order. This followed engagement with residents. The Order is to reduce anti-social behaviour in the area. We are working with Essex Police to enable the effective enforcement of the Order.

We introduced Op Union which has provided more visible policing at busy times. This has allowed Police numbers to be uplifted in a planned way. It has provided a safer experience for residents, visitors and businesses.

The Southend-on-Sea Community Safety Partnership co-produced their statutory Strategic Intelligence Assessment for 2022/23. It was co-produced with partners, identifying priorities. The partnership is also developing a Community Safety Partnership Strategy.

Campaigns to support the safety and well-being of Southend-on-Sea’s residents include:

  • celebrating the work of foster carers, who have helped to transform the lives of children and young people, during Foster Care Fortnight
  • Southend-on-Sea Libraries launched a campaign called ‘Read, Talk, Share’ to tackle loneliness and support mental health. The new campaign saw every library in the city provided with books from the Reading Well collections. This included e- books and e-audio books through the library’s digital service, BorrowBox
  • the council’s SeeTheSigns campaign continued to reach out to young people and their families to let them know that there is always a way out from drug gangs. This year, a campaign video was created. It uses real transcripts from former gang members who have managed to remove themselves from county line gangs
  • Southend-on-Sea Youth Council launched an anti-knife campaign to discourage people from picking up a knife. The campaign has been designed by young people, for young people. It is funded by the Violence and Vulnerability Board
  • we proudly supported Counter Terrorism Policing’s Easing Lockdown Vigilance Campaign. The campaign encourages communities, the public and businesses to help the police tackle terrorism by remaining vigilant and reporting suspicious behaviour
  • Southend-on-Sea Safeguarding Partnership (Children’s) and ActiveSouthend teamed up with National Child Safeguarding Charity, NWG, to deliver its ‘Safe to Play’ campaign. 564 children and 100 parents took part in the campaign. NWG created the campaign using funding from Sport England to get parents, clubs and coaches talking openly about safeguarding, and striving to ensure that all children have positive experiences when taking part in sport, physical and extra-curricular activities.

The council and its partners have been working to support children and young people throughout school holidays, with a range of programmes providing holiday free school meals and activities.

Social Care

In December, the collaborative neuro developmental pathway between children’s services and health was agreed to support children and young people with complex needs. It will be going live imminently. This will enable a multi-agency approach, with consultants and practitioners working together to identify and meet the needs of our children and young people.

The council has been developing a new direction for adult social care in Southend-on- Sea to support adults with social care needs and all carers. The overall direction is built on three core strategies named ‘Ageing Well’, ‘Caring Well’, and ‘Living Well’, setting out priorities over the next five years. The three strategies were co-designed with people who use services and their friends and families. They focus on how the council will support people across the city, whether they are older people, those with a care and support need with learning disabilities, mental health challenges, autism, living with additional physical or sensory difficulty, or the friends and family of people with additional needs. The strategies are backed by a more than £5 million investment in adult social care.

A new mixed-use care facility for adults, Brooke Meadows House, has been opened to provide integrated care services. Services include:

  • rehabilitation support for adults discharged from hospital
  • the Viking Day Service for adults with learning disabilities
  • Making It Work supported employment service
  • two services providing specialist home care

Affordable housing

The council continues to strive to reduce homelessness and make sure everyone in the city has a good quality, sustainable home that meets their needs. Progress on housing in 2021/22 includes:

  • purchasing 18 properties for the Rough Sleepers Accommodation Programme, with all 18 let to former rough sleepers
  • investing £1.97 million to purchase 10 properties for use by homeless families in Southend-on-Sea
  • developing four new council homes using ‘Modern Methods of Construction’. Two of these meet Net Zero Carbon standards
  • refurbishing seven properties for use as safe temporary accommodation for survivors of domestic abuse
  • progressing the Better Queensway regeneration scheme. This will deliver over 600 affordable homes over the course of the project
  • introducing the council’s new social housing allocations policy. This provides greater priority to single people experiencing homelessness
  • completing a public consultation on Housing in Later Life. The consultation asked residents over age 55 about their housing and support aspirations. It also asked about any barriers to moving from their current residence. The findings are being evaluated and reviewed
  • plans to build 29 new Council homes on disused garage sites around Eagle Way in Shoeburyness being given planning approval. The plans include the development of a bungalow, houses and a four-storey block of 16 self-contained flats, with parking spaces and a cycle store. The homes will be managed by South Essex Homes.
  • the council has introduced a Selective Licensing Agreement scheme in areas of the city. This follows public consultation. The scheme enables the council to regulate conditions, management, and occupation of properties. It will help to improve housing conditions for those in the private sector, reduce anti-social behaviour, reduce levels of property-related crime, increase the number of good landlords and develop an improved offer providing higher quality rented housing, resulting in improved neighbourhoods.

The procurement process for transitional supported housing contracts for people with mental ill health, offenders, and those at risk of offending, children and young people aged 16 to 25 years and young parents aged 16 to 25 years has been completed and contracts awarded. A review across the remaining 16 to 25 accommodation and support pathway will be undertaken in 2022. The intent is to implement a wider procurement framework for 2023.

Outcome success measures

  • 92.7% of concluded section 42 enquiries (safeguarding investigations) with a risk identified and a result of either Risk Reduced or Risk Removed
  • 367.35 permanent admissions to residential care, per 100,000 population (people aged 65 years and over)
  • 68.5% of adults in contact with secondary mental health services who live independently with or without support
  • 53.1% of those that received short-term service during the year where sequel was either no on-going support or support of a lower level
  • 81.8% of older people (aged 65 years and over) who were still at home 91 days after discharge from hospital into reablement/rehabilitation services
  • 88.8% of adults with learning disabilities who live in their own home or with their family
  • 372.3 under 75 mortality, per 100,000 population
  • 0.94 violent crime with injury, per 100,000 (average)
  • 2.02 domestic abuse incidents, per 100,000 population (average)
  • 9,642 violence against the person offences in the rolling year to date
  • 43% of residents feel safe after dark (Residents' Perception Survey 2021)
  • 81% of residents feel safe during the day (Residents’ Perception Survey 2021)
  • 51.25% of those at risk of homelessness that had existing or alternative accommodation secured for at least 6 months (quarterly average)
  • 242 children in temporary accommodation (quarterly average)
  • 2.47 households in temporary accommodation, per 1,000 households
  • 0 repeat homelessness within two years of accepting a suitable private rented sector offer (priority need cases owed the main duty)
  • 23 properties purchased by the council via the Acquisitions Programme
  • 31% housing delivery test result

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