The Communities and Public Protection Scrutiny Committee met to discuss knife crime, community safety, and review the Problem Solving Partnership Meeting. Councillor Jack Phipps, Chair of the Committee, was scheduled to lead the meeting. The committee was also expected to review and refine its work programme for the year.

Knife Crime Mission

The committee was scheduled to review a report that introduced a mission-based approach to tackling knife crime in the borough. The report noted that while Waltham Forest has lower rates of serious violence than comparable boroughs, rates of knife injury among young people are higher, with young black men and boys being significantly more likely to be victims.

The council was scheduled to prioritise knife crime as one of its early areas for mission-based working, to develop a shared understanding of the complexity of knife crime locally, and to work more effectively as a system to implement a focused and targeted response to keep young people safe.

The mission-based approach to addressing knife crime and feelings of safety focuses on two core pillars of activity:

• Working as a system to keep young people safe
• Mobilising a shared community response

The report stated that through a series of engagement events and workshops, the council has worked with partners, services, communities and young people to identify two system areas to prioritise for early action:

• Targeted support for young people most at risk of violence as they transition into adulthood.
• Responding to violence in locations where risk is greatest, by strengthening how the council works with partners and communities.

The report also stated that the council will launch a visible safety campaign co-designed with residents and partners, empowering communities to have an active and shared role in keeping people safe across the borough.

Problem Solving Partnership Meeting

The committee was scheduled to discuss the Problem Solving Partnership Meeting (PSPM), a multi-agency forum established to address persistent and emerging crime and antisocial behaviour (ASB) issues across Waltham Forest. The PSPM brings together key partners—including the council, Metropolitan Police, housing providers, and other stakeholders—to collaboratively tackle anti-social behaviour, crime, and environmental concerns.

The committee was expected to review the information within the report, ask questions of witnesses and make recommendations as required.

The PSPM was co-designed by the Corporate ASB Team and the Metropolitan Police Service in 2019 to bring together council services, Neighbourhoods Policing Teams, Housing Providers, Support Services and other stakeholders to collaboratively address local issues. The purpose of the fortnightly meeting is identifying and resolving persistent problems such as crime, anti-social behaviour, environmental crime and public safety concerns using a problem-solving approach.

The report stated that the PSPM has been widely praised for facilitating stronger collaboration between internal departments and external agencies, including targeted interventions to address crime and anti-social behaviour impacting public spaces in Waltham Forest. Joint initiatives have included coordinated patrols, safeguarding referrals, environmental clean-up, design out crime initiatives and multiple joint operations.

The report also noted that a review took place in May 2025 to assess the effectiveness of PSPM based on stakeholder feedback, analysing achievements, challenges, and areas for improvement.

Some of the key findings of the review were:

• The Problem-Solving Partnership Meeting (PSPM) has been widely recognised for strengthening multi-agency collaboration across Waltham Forest.
• Stakeholders have praised the improved police presence and transparency in information sharing.
• The current distribution of responsibilities places a disproportionate burden on the Police, with calls for greater involvement from Council departments and other agencies.
• Some meetings have been noted to focus too heavily on operational detail, detracting from strategic priorities.

Violence Reduction and Community Safety Pre-Summer and Summer Plan 2025

The committee was scheduled to receive a presentation on the Violence Reduction and Community Safety Pre-Summer and Summer Plan 2025. The plan focused on expanding youth provision, targeting parks and travel hubs, and strengthening partnership working.

By concentrating shared resources and outreach in parks and travel hubs - areas that typically see increased activity in the summer - the plan seeks to create safer public spaces and address emerging concerns proactively.

The report noted that there were 202 serious violence offences in Summer 2024.

Key points from summer 2024 data:

• Slight peak between 6pm-9pm for victims under 18
• Thursday was a peak day for serious violence for victims under 25
• Black men, boys and girls are more likely to be victims of serious violence

The Scrutiny Report

The committee was invited to review the draft Forward Plan for the 2025/26 municipal year and make recommendations as necessary. The Draft Forward Plan 25-26 included a number of items for future meetings, including:

• VAWG – Specialist Services
• Trading Standards
• Community Safety Summer Plan and Safer Streets – Outcomes
• Citizen's Assembly including Inclusive Reverse Mentoring Scheme
• Martyn's Law¹
• Knife Crime

The committee was also scheduled to review and comment on the Action Tracker from the previous meetings, and any accompanying responses.