In the second part of our interview with the area commander for Hastings & Rother, Chief Inspector Jay Mendis-Gunasekera answers questions from Rye News readers about how Sussex Police fights crime, drugs, and anti-social behaviour in our town. You can hear the whole interview on the Ryecast podcast.
The future of Rye police station
From the outside, the police station in Rye looks a bit unloved. There’s peeling paint on the window frames and pieces of paper with the revised opening hours taped over the original signs. Inside, much of the building is unused and would need a lot of work to be made fit for purpose. The cells are not in use, nor are the upstairs quarters. Chief Inspector Mendis-Gunasekera says the building is constantly under review. “It's not a designated police station, but it is a fully functional office and does get used by my team, especially on busy days in Rye and Camber. The building is not open twenty-four hours a day and that’s down to footfall.” Whilst the front door is open to the public between 10am and 2pm on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, he points to the many ways people can report crime digitally and says the way the RNLI also use the offices and car park is a sign of things to come. “We’re scoping out a multi-agency approach to the building. Questions need to be asked with our partners about how we utilise the station to its best value. There’s always the potential for changes in the future.”
Police visibility around Rye
As area commander for Hastings and Rother, his 65 strong team covers a huge area which presents a big challenge. “We have to travel vast areas of the county, but I do try to make sure my teams patrol in each area. The days of police out on foot all the time are a bit distant, for me it’s all about managing demand. If there’s a problem, I will increase resources. In the last three months we’ve had eight reports of anti-social behaviour, three reports of criminal damage and two reports of theft. If that was to grow, I would increase the number of officers in the area.” Despite that commitment, he does understand how people in smaller towns like Rye don’t feel they see enough of the police when compared with Hastings. “In the last six months we’ve around 500 patrols in Rye and Camber. The patrol’s last about 30 minutes each. In total it’s over 10,000 engagements with the public.”
Drugs and drug dealing
Compared to elsewhere in the country, Chief Inspector Mendis-Gunasekera says there isn’t a drug problem in Rye. “We haven’t had any reports in Rye. There’s no open street dealing. There aren’t any county lines issues. If people feel there are underlying drugs problems they need to report it to us, but Rye is a very safe place to be.” So is it a case of drug dealing not happening or people not telling the police about it? “There is probably activity. Anywhere throughout the country, or indeed throughout the world, it’s a kind of given there is drug activity. But if there’s no harm coming from that activity, people don’t tend to report it." He says where it has been reported, it’s been dealt with. “Last June we had a series of around 60 incidents around Rye, with reports of criminal damage and violence. Within three weeks all those who had been involved had been arrested. They've all been charged, they're all in prison. I made sure that we put the right officers and the right teams in place, plus we had the support from the community."
Motorbikes and speeding cars
When Rye News asked for questions to put to Sussex Police, we got a lot of emails about loud motorbikes and fast cars. Once again it’s a case of tell the police. “If I know there’s an issue I can put resources in to manage it. If it’s a case of bikes with illegal exhausts that are really loud, our road policing team can seize them. When it comes to their speeding, Operation Downsway is in place to stop death and serious injury.” He says Sussex Police works with closely with community speed watch teams to try and reduce speeding offences, and to work together in a very visible way. “People always ask why we make our speed checks so obvious, but it has a much larger effect on people if they can see us when driving. We may catch less people, but if we can reduce people speeding on a larger scale, we keep more people safe. Speeding is dangerous and causes serious injury, so the onus is on members of public to drive safely and comply with the law.”
Crime and anti-social behaviour
One of our readers wanted to know whether the local police still attend every victim of crime - something home secretary Suella Braverman says she has a commitment about from the Association of Chief Constables. “Certain crimes do not need attendance. You will get a visit if somebody has been in your home, but if your outhouse has been broken into and nothing's been stolen, there's no potential for identifying a suspect, and there aren't any witnesses or forensic opportunities, then we wouldn't attend. Every incident is assessed. Is the victim vulnerable? Do they need our support? In both those cases, we would attend.” For anti-social behaviour, Chief Inspector Mendis-Gunasekera says it’s not just for the police to manage. “We need to work together with councils, local communities, and social services. It’s all about coming together to make Rye a better and safer place to live.” He’s not worried about the police’s role being replaced by other agencies, for example the enforcement company contracted by Rother Council to deal with litter, fly tipping and dog mess. “You want a cleaner Rye or a safer Rye? We can do that working together.”
You can read the first Rye News article here and you can hear the whole interview on our Ryecast podcast. Just search for Ryecast wherever you get your podcasts or visit www.ryecast.org
Many thanks to Chief Inspector Mendis-Gunasekera for his time. He can be contacted via Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 and Rye police station is open Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday from 10am until 2pm.
