Report Summary
This report outlines the key themes from the SPA and Police Scotland’s engagements in Wick which aimed to gain insights into views on the findings of the community confidence survey and how policing could be enhanced to inform the second phase of the Community Confidence Action Research Project work in Wick.
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Views on the survey results
Participants largely agreed with findings of survey (low levels of confidence in policing) and stated that there was nothing unexpected or surprising to them.
A number of points came up in discussion at this point. 101 call handling times were judged to be too long and access to the police station at Wick was limited, with narrow and inconsistent opening hours. There was a shared view that the police are not seen often enough and are therefore not present/available at community events.
There was also some frustration that positive messages about crime reduction are not getting through to people locally, and participants also claimed that historical issues about police and community relations in Wick continue to get more attention, particularly on social media, and this is overshadowing matters and affecting confidence. Participants also felt that Wick is too often seen as remote-rural, yet it is a town with many issues and needs more commonly associated with urban areas. There are also high demands associated with road safety, although participants gave a positive view on the use of countryside rangers to tackle issues linked to the seasonal NC500 tourism route.
