Last Wednesday saw the official launch of 19 Safer Neighbourhoods Teams throughout Haringey one for each ward. But what exactly are they and how will residents benefit? KAY MURRAY reports

In January 2004, the Metropolitan Police attained a record number of 30,000 police officers, with the figure set to increase to 35,000 officers in the coming years.

To achieve this growth and ensure that the extra officers were focused on community issues, the Met decided to introduce the Safer Neighbourhoods programme a new ward-based policing style that focuses on quality-of-life crimes', such as vandalism, littering, and anti-social behaviour issues.

Following public consultation, the first three teams were introduced to Crouch End, Woodside and White Hart Lane in April 2004. Over the past year more followed until the final three teams were installed in Alexandra, Highgate and Fortis Green by April.

Safer Neighbourhoods Teams (SNTs) are ring-fenced from other policing duties, which means they have to focus on crimes, issues and concerns within their particular ward.

Sergeant Ian Wells, who was recently appointed team leader to the Alexandra team, said: "Before SNTs, police went with what they thought were priorities, not what local people thought.

"We are dedicated to dealing with day-to-day crime on a particular ward, with problems such as anti-social behaviour, dog fouling or even littering.

"We deal with low-level crimes which are basically quality-of-life crimes, more than anything else. It's about the public telling us what they want and us responding to it."

Other problems such as graffiti and abandoned cars also feature on the list of issues that the SNTs address. However, to report an emergency or a more serious crime, they are not the people to call.

"We're not an emergency response team," said Sgt Wells. "We are mainly on foot and bicycles and can't get to a crime as fast as the emergency response team can.

"If you do need police urgently and quickly, call 999."

Most SNTs consist of a minimum of six uniformed police staff one sergeant, two PCs and three police community support officers (PCSOs) who are expected to work with the community, the council and consultative groups to ensure residents' priorities are identified so they can feel safe when going about their day-to-day business.

Sgt Wells said: "We have public consultations where residents come to us and tell us their problems. We work towards dealing with these and then report back to the public about how successful we've been."

According to the Met's latest crime figures, crime in London is at an all-time low, but despite this, the fear of crime is still high and they are hoping that the introduction of SNTs will play a significant role in reducing this.

Haringey's borough commander, Chief Superintendent Simon O'Brien, said: "The new SNTs provide us with a more visible police presence on Haringey's streets, boosting public safety and giving everyone greater access to our services. In essence, it's about introducing policing values fit for the 21st Century that balance our need to cut crime with the public's want for greater police visibility."

And Sgt Wells believes that a visible police presence is what the public want and need. He said: "Before, people just saw police officers whizzing around in cars and thought they couldn't stop them or talk to them. Now, if they have a problem that's quite minor, such as fly-tipping, they can call the team or email them."

In the short term, SNTs will be based at their nearest police station, but with the introduction of The Roundway, a Safer Neighbourhoods base which opened in Tottenham last week, it is expected that others will follow.

A Haringey police spokesman said: "The police are looking for bases for other teams. The Roundway has three of the teams based there as it is located on the corner of three wards. This could be the case with other wards, but it depends on the size of the base."

Although Haringey police were unable to provide any statistics on the success of the SNTs since their introduction, figures from neighbouring Barnet showed that in Burnt Oak ward crime fell by a third in the first nine months after the team was launched.

For residents living in Muswell Hill ward or Alexandra ward, this weekend is a chance to meet your teams and discuss any concerns you may have with them on their Have a Say Days.

Alexandra SNT will be at Alexandra Park Library, in Alexandra Park Road, Wood Green, from 11am to 3pm on Saturday, while the Muswell Hill SNT will be at Priory Park, in Middle Lane, Hornsey, from 8.30am to 12pm on Sunday.

If you have concerns about crime and disorder issues in your area, contact your SNT team by visiting the web site www.met.police.uk/saferneighbourhoods/