Police Scotland Update
Argyll and Bute Council · 31 January 2024
Back to Mid Argyll, Kintyre and the Islands Area Community Planning Group — 31 January 2024 and its agenda
Text extracted from the council's PDF. Layout and reading order may differ from the original.
Page 1
OFFICIAL OFFICIAL Police Scotland Update Mid Argyll, Kintyre and the Islands Area Community Planning Group – 31/01/2024 Fraud Prevention Frauds and scams continue to be a focus as offences are still being reported on a regular basis. The Scam Savvy Quiz was delivered to the Tarbert Scottish Women’s Institute, the Mid Argyll Cancer Support Group and a community group on Islay. We would welcome the opportunity to carry out this input at any community group or with any organisation, particularly if you have a vulnerable audience. Call blockers are discussed at these Scam Inputs whereby 16 call blockers were requested. Currently, officers are making use of a Friends Against Scams free call blocker initiative whereby any devices requested are being sought through this scheme which means there is no funding or divisional spend required. The most updated figures from trueCall who provide these devices is that we now have 262 call blockers installed in Argyll and Bute to protect older and vulnerable people from nuisance and scam phone calls. So far 86,504 calls have been blocked, and trueCall estimate that 141 scams have been prevented. It is estimated that over the 4 year life of these units they will have blocked 207,370 nuisance calls (of which 57,149 will have been scam phone calls), prevented 337 scams, saved vulnerable households £995,357, led to a reduction of £924,550 in NHS, social care & police costs, and an increase in wellbeing & quality of life valued at £1,072,235 - total benefits of £2,992,142. The financial benefits of £1,919,907 are 28 times the project costs of £67,858.
Page 2
OFFICIAL OFFICIAL Parcel Delivery Scams - We often see an increase in this type of scam over the festive and New Year period. Legitimate parcel delivery services will not contact you unexpectedly to ask for personal or payment details whether it be a text, email or phone-call. If you receive an unexpected message about a parcel delivery, don't click on any links or follow any instructions to download an app to your phone. If you are expecting a parcel, track the delivery on the company’s official website or app rather than using links or contact details provided in an unexpected message. Contact your bank immediately if you think you may have made a payment to a scammer or if you are worried that a fraudulent transaction has been made from your account. Out and About Partnership and Prevention officers provided personal safety inputs to Lomond and Argyll Advocacy Service staff as well as information on county lines drug dealing methods and risks.
Page 3
OFFICIAL OFFICIAL Officers from Lochgilphead Police Station recently visited Tarbert Primary School. Officers spoke about the impact anti-social behaviour, such as vandalism, has on the wider community. Local officers in Campbeltown joined our colleagues at Campbeltown Fire Station and other members of their community, with this year’s Santa dash. Helping to raise funds for the The Fire Fighters Charity. Campbeltown Officers have also been busy, at Castlehill Primary they carried out Internet Safety and Online Gaming Workshops with Primary’s 4-7. The main focus of the workshop was keeping children safe online, particularly in online gaming. They also covered the role of a Police Officer in our community. Further, Online Safety sessions took place at Castlehill Primary, Carradale Primary and Drumlember Primary. The aim of these sessions was to educate parents of the risks the children could face online and provide advice and support creating password protections and software updates.
Page 4
OFFICIAL OFFICIAL Divisional Recognition Awards 2023 The Argyll and West Dunbartonshire Divisional Awards 2023 took place in Oban this year to recognise the outstanding work that our officers, staff and partners do in the communities. The awards included Probationer of the Year, Special Recognition, Partnership, Outstanding Bravery, Unsung Hero, Commander’s Award, Above and Beyond and Team of the Year. The Runner up for the Partnership Award was Sheena McLean from Argyll and Bute Council. Sheena was nominated for her unmatched knowledge of Anti-Social Behaviour legislation, mediation skills and drive to improve CCTV throughout Argyll and Bute. 16 Days Against Gender Based Violence Campaign Between 25th November and 10th December, officers supported the 16 Days Against Gender Based Violence Campaign. The theme for 2023 was ‘Imagine a Scotland without Gender Based Violence’. During the campaign period Police Scotland as part of the wider Violence Against Women and Girls Partnership in Argyll and Bute heavily promoted support networks for all affected by gender based violence as well as the Disclosure Scheme for Domestic Abuse in Scotland (DSDAS). DSDAS aims to prevent domestic abuse by
Page 5
OFFICIAL OFFICIAL giving people the right to ask about the background of their partner. It also (anonymously) allows concerned members of the public, such as relatives or friends, the right to ask about someone’s partner if they are concerned that person has been abusive in the past. DSDAS enables potential victims to make the choice on whether to remain in a relationship, and working with partners, provide them with support to assist them in their decision. The campaign also involved some local pledges by prominent male roles models in our community showing positive messages about what gender based violence means to them and what they can do to make a positive difference. Drink & Drug Driving OLI and MAKI Police continue to be proactive in tackling those that would drive whilst under the influence of alcohol and drugs and taking them off the roads. Even in today’s Scotland, where the dangers that such crimes cause for other road users and pedestrians are well known, as well as the impact on the person’s own life through loss of licence and sometimes job, this problematic crime type continues. In the month preceding the 2nd January, your local officers proactively caught, arrested and charged 15 people with drink and drug offences relating to driving vehicles on our roads. We will continue to try and stamp this out to make our communities safer. We need your help make us even more effective. Should you know of people that drink drive, please, report it to your local station through 101, utilise the varying methods on our website - https://www.scotland.police.uk/contact-us/ or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111. Together we can help to make the environment that we live in safer.