Successful crime stopping project in Lincoln Road area will not be moved elsewhere in Peterborough

The Alliance project, led by Cambridgeshire Constabulary in partnership with Peterborough City Council, was formed in 2023 and has seen multiple high-profile operations and significant seizures of illicit goods

It tackles serious organised crime through the Home Office’s Clear, Hold and Build strategy by focusing on disrupting criminal groups, maintaining safe spaces and building resilient communities.

Joint enforcement between the police and council has seen a number of successes in the Millfield/Lincoln Road area, including 700,000 cigarettes seized at a value of £200,000 and 20,000 vapes seized at a value of between £20,000 and £40,000.

It has also seen multiple seizures of cannabis, heroin, and crack cocaine, as well as a number of closure orders on premises in the Lincoln Road area.

The project's successes were discussed at a city council scrutiny committee meeting on July 10.

Councillor Ray Bisby (Peterborough First) asked about the possibility of moving the focus of the project to other areas of the city where organised crime takes place.

Inspector Sam Tucker of Cambridgeshire Constabulary said that while the Alliance project itself would remain focused in the Millfield/Lincoln Road area, learnings from the project would still be taken and utilised across the city.

He told the committee: "This particular area was chosen based on the intelligence data at the time which demonstrated there was a concentration of organised crime in that area.

"As a concept, it can be moved and there have been projects up and down the country.

"What I think is more realistic is using some of the learnings from this project in other areas [of Peterborough]."

Inspector Tucker added: "There are currently no plans to move [the Alliance project] around Peterborough.

"We might be looking to do that in other parts of the county but not here. It's a really intense project about longevity and sustainability and building something into the community.

"We can definitely use some of the concepts in there but to use this initiative in its entirety is unlikely."

Despite the achievements made, the project faces a number of challenges including a lack of interest from community groups and a lack of funding from the government.

The project is essentially a framework for the police, partner agencies and the local community to best utilise their existing resources, as opposed to receiving bespoke funding from the Home Office.

A council report stated: "There is no funding available from the Home Office to develop projects or initiatives.

"This makes investing in community-based projects difficult to achieve unless external grant funding opportunities can be identified."

Clair George, head of safer communities at the council, said: "We look for where funding opportunities are.

"There's been funding opportunities through the police and crime commissioner into a prevention fund."

She added that the council and police are making sure they get the "maximum impact" of the funding they have available.

A recent Home Office report recommended that the government looked into providing bespoke funding for the Clear, Hold, Build initiative in the future, noting that it is a "key barrier".