Street drinking clampdown and train interceptions: The plan for a safer Southport Christmas

Increased patrols planned as part of Winter of Action

Hello and welcome to the midweek edition of The Southport Lead.

The national spotlight has been back on the town in recent days due to the broadcast of a BBC documentary in which the families of Alice, Bebe and Elsie bravely and emotionally spoke about their daughters and their loss. This edition does not focus on that but it’s worth watching the show on the BBC iPlayer to hear from the families in their own words.

Elsewhere, both the government and individual police forces have announced plans for a ‘Winter of Action’ which will see extra resources deployed to ensure public safety throughout Christmas. Despite Southport being listed on the locations to benefit from this, little detail has actually been given about what that will entail so we’ve attempted to find out more about what is happening here.

In December, we are offering 20% off the price of a subscription if you make it as a gift to somebody else. You can read about our special Christmas offer here.

---

Southport briefing

🥳 Sefton Council has celebrated the long-awaited completion of work on Les Transformations de Southport phase one. The near-year-long process which included pedestrianising Market Street, redesigning Eastbank Street’s pavements and making King Street one-way are designed to “create a more pleasant shopping, dining and event experience, to encourage more visitors to spend longer in the area”. Cllr Paulette Lappin, Cabinet Member for Regeneration, Economy and Skills said: “By encouraging people to visit more frequently and to spend more time in Southport and generally making the place feel nice to be in, high quality public spaces such as this are important to supporting local businesses. Pedestrianising Market Street has created a great opportunity for events and markets such as The Coastal Jam in September this year. It’s an example of how in the future, we can encourage families to an area and feel safe away from traffic. This new space creates such possibilities for the area, which is so great to see, and I look forward to people coming and really enjoying the space.”

☔ Flooding outside a primary school has become so bad parents have had to carry their children over large pools of water, according to Cllr Mike Sammon. He blamed blocked gullies for the issue and says it has been a months-long issue which Sefton Council has failed to “get a grip on”. He said: “What we’re seeing outside St Patrick’s is the result of basic cleansing and drainage maintenance being allowed to slip for far too long. According to the council, it will be mechanically sweeping the area to ensure there is no debris blocking the gully and, if the area remains flooded, it will work with the gully cleansing team to deal with the issue.

---

Increased patrols for ‘Winter of Action’

Christmas in Southport. Pic: Southport BID

By Jamie Lopez

Anti-social behaviour (ASB) and street drinking are being targeted during a two-month-long crackdown in Southport town centre.

Increased police patrols in key shopping areas and more community engagement are the town’s focus as part of the ‘Winter of Action’ crackdown announced by the government. It follows on from the Safe Streets Summer initiative which involved similar targeting of ASB.

For many businesses in the town centre, the Christmas period is critical as an opportunity to benefit from greater footfall and increased spending. The past year has seen added challenges from lengthy roadworks and, in an issue rarely spoken about publicly given the significance of the tragedy and the loss for the families involved, visitor numbers in the town have been markedly reduced since the Southport Attack.

When the government announced the Winter of Action, it said the summer action had boosted public confidence in town centres and that levels of witnessed and experienced ASB had reduced according to public surveys.

In Merseyside Police’s press release announcing its plans for the period - which covers the whole of December and January - it spoke of planned work in town centres but did not specifically reference its plans for Southport.

The Southport Lead understands the plans include work alongside Sefton Council involving twice-weekly walkabouts in the town centre to target street drinking. These visits will also focus on ASB as well as engaging with the public to provide reassurance, with focus on key shopping locations.