Thanet’s Margate Task Force (MTF) team has won the prestigious Partnership and Innovation Award at the Kent Community Safety Awards. The award is for excellence in partnership working and innovation towards the goal of making Kent and Medway safer in 2012. Nominations for the award also included Mr Bob Akehurst, Farm Watch and Mandy Humphrey, Joint Family Management Officer.
The Kent Community Safety Awards were held at the Ashford International Hotel on Wednesday 27 March. Kent Police hosted the prestigious awards evening to recognise the people of Kent who contribute to preventing crime and support community safety. Thanet’s Margate Task Force was represented by Inspector Mark Pearson and Constable Alex Taylor from Kent Police, Janine Marshall Health Visitor from the NHS, and Sandra Cooke Environmental Health Officer from Thanet District Council.
The Awards Ceremony was hosted by the Chairman of Kent People’s Trust, Nigel Wheeler, with guest speaker Clive Emson, the Chairman of Clive Emson Auctioneers.
The MTF is a multi-agency team comprising 14 agencies and over 30 staff; all of them co-located at Thanet District Council. The MTF was formed in consequence to the recognition that dynamic, collaborative working was necessary to successfully tackle the considerable drain on public resources attributable to geographic concentrations of risks and vulnerabilities in local communities.
Madeline Homer, Director of Community Services at Thanet District Council, said; “I am delighted that the outstanding achievements of the Margate Task Force have received recognition at the Kent Community Safety Awards. Thanet District Council is very proud of the whole team and continues to support the great work they do for our communities.”
The multi-agency, co-located team has reduced crime and significantly improved joint ‘street level’ engagement; generating improved and more responsive service delivery in line with the specific needs of the local community.
Inspector Mark Pearson, Kent Police, added; “I have 25 years service in the Police and it is fair to say that since being on the co-located multi-agency Margate Task Force, I have learnt so much about the considerable value that other agencies make towards regenerating and better engaging communities, along with successfully tackling crime and antisocial behaviour. We are all particularly proud of our work serving the most vulnerable people in the community. It is fantastic that Thanet has been recognised for setting the standard; leading the way in working jointly to better serve the needs of local communities.”
Can I be the first, and it seems the only person to publicly congratulate this team on a job well done? The mutual understanding and co working mentioned here was exactly what we were after whne this concept was launched some years ago; fostered by a long drive to co locate; and a really useful behind the scenes influencing role for myself as both a district and county councillor, being able to discuss this with authority with both sides of the equation. This is a good reward for some really effective work.
ReplyDeleteNo Chris. These are dull and pointless council-to-council awards for doing the obvious ie talking to each other. More interesting would be your role on the Manston airport committee and monitors and the 0% salaries.
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