Neighbours in some parts of Haringey are planning their own street patrols to try to tackle crime, a councillor has warned.

Cllr Pippa Connor told the Haringey Council’s overview and scrutiny committee that residents in the west of the borough were considering the move amid fears many crimes are going unreported.

It came during a discussion of the cabinet’s priorities for the year ahead, with the borough’s high crime rate near the top of the agenda.

Cllr Connor, who represents Muswell Hill, said: “In the west of the borough, we are experiencing people organising their own meetings – basically around what they are going to do to patrol the streets.

“That has never happened before – this is new. I have brought it up to the right councillor about this, but it’s just to flag up that even when the (crime) numbers aren’t high in part of the borough, there is a knock-on effect.

“Young people are not reporting these crimes, so the figures are not necessarily true.”

A council report discussed by the overview and scrutiny committee showed the borough had the second highest rate of robbery in London in the year to March.

The number of violence with injury offences dropped compared to the previous year but remained the highest compared to a group of similar councils.

A residents survey found antisocial behaviour such as vandalism, drugs, and drunk or rowdy behaviour was perceived to be a bigger problem in 2018 than in 2017.

Committee chair Cllr Lucia das Neves raised concerns that the council and police did not fully understand their responsibilities on crime.

She said: “One of the things some of us are experiencing in wards is when residents are raising concerns, the police are suggesting the council should be dealing with this.

“I think it’s very serious from my point of view, because it’s no-one holding responsibility.”

Council leader Cllr Joseph Ejiofor said the council would work with the Met Police’s new borough commander to ensure police officer vacancies are filled.

Chief executive Zina Etheridge told the committee the council was working on a community safety strategy aimed at addressing some of the problems.

She added: “The other piece of work I would emphasise is the importance of community trust in the police and civic institutions generally around community safety.

“If people see buck-passing, how are they going to trust what they are saying?”

Over the long-term, the council has adopted a public health approach to crime that aims to tackle the root causes of offending.

But Cllr Connor raised concerns that if temporary funding from the Greater London Authority and other sources dried up, the council would again face problems dealing with crime.

Cllr Ejiofor said: “We do have an additional resource which is specifically looking at fundraising and how can we align the grant funding with the things we want to do.”

Ms Etheridge added: “Clearly, we will continue to make the case for sustainable funding. That is absolutely essential.

“Some of the work we are doing is training a large workforce – including people who work in the community and not with the council around building up the capacity of the community to do these things.

“That is not the whole answer, but it is part of it.”