Wiltshire Council considers Public Spaces Protection Order for Chippenham

Following the successful implementation of Public Spaces Protection Orders (PSPO) in Salisbury and Devizes last year, Wiltshire Council is now considering the introduction of a PSPO in Chippenham town centre.

The new proposal is in response to a pattern of Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB) being recorded in the town by Wiltshire Police, with residents, visitors and businesses experiencing harassment, alarm and distress as a result. 

A PSPO is a tool available in the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014, which provides wide-ranging tools and powers for local authorities to help tackle anti-social behaviour. The Act gives councils the authority to draft and implement PSPOs in response to ASB issues affecting their communities, provided certain criteria is met.

The proposed Chippenham order will seek to address the following issues in both the town centre and John Coles Park:

• Street drinking - prohibiting the drinking of alcohol or having open containers of alcohol. This would enable officers to seize any alcohol found on a person in the specified area.
• Anti-social behaviour caused by groups of people - enabling officers to ask groups of people exhibiting ASB to disperse and not return to the specified area for up to 48 hours.
• Issues with individuals under the influence or in possession of controlled drugs or other psychoactive substances
• People who urinate, defecate or expose their genitalia in a public place.

Anyone found in breach of the Order could be issued with an on-the-spot Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN) of £100.

A consultation will start from Monday 20 January for residents and business owners to provide their views and feedback to help establish whether the proposed PSPO is the right and proportionate action to take to help prevent anti-social behaviour in the town. The consultation will run for six weeks until 2 March, whereby all feedback received will be considered before a final decision is made. People can take part in the consultation at www.wiltshire.gov.uk/community-safety-pspo-chippenham.

Cllr Dominic Muns, Cabinet Member for Environment, said: We have put PSPOs in place in Devizes and Salisbury within the last year and we are pleased that these are having a positive impact on the ASB that was being experienced by residents in those areas. So far, the police have issued multiple FPNs to offenders and have received positive feedback from communities including Salisbury BID. With our partners in Wiltshire Police and Chippenham Town Council now reporting that similar issues are being experienced in Chippenham, we feel that now is an appropriate time to consider another PSPO for Wiltshire.

I'd like to assure people that Wiltshire remains a very safe and welcoming county, however, safeguarding our residents is a key priority for us in our Business Plan. As we consider the introduction of a PSPO in Chippenham, our local residents, business owners and visitors can feel reassured that we are taking these issues seriously.

I want to encourage as many people as possible to take part in the consultation so we can gather the community's thoughts and feelings on the issue before making an informed decision.

Inspector Pete Foster, from Wiltshire Police, said ASB in the town centre has been one of the main issues fed back to us by the local community. A Public Spaces Protection Order would give us the ability to tackle this behaviour to improve the town, allowing local residents, businesses, and visitors to enjoy Chippenham without having to witness the ASB that we have previously experienced. I would encourage people to give us feedback in this consultation process to make their voice heard.

To find out more about the proposed PSPO for Chippenham and take part in the consultation, people can visit www.wiltshire.gov.uk/community-safety-pspo-chippenham