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Welcome to the latest edition of my bulletin that highlights some of the activities that I was involved in during April.

Over the last couple of months I have been fortunate to be able to go out to communities across our Force area to engage with residents, partners and community representatives, and April again was no different.

My Community Engagement Day in Ceredigion in April, followed a great Community Engagement Day I had in Llanelli at the end of March. During my day in Llanelli I met with the Clerk to Llanelli Rural Council to hear about the Llwynhendy Hub project, before visiting Siloah Chapel in Seaside to discuss plans to renovate the Chapel into a community facility that will have a special emphasis on children and young people

My Ceredigion Community Engagement Day was in Aberystwyth where I met with several key partners, service providers, and members of the public, which you can read about below.

It was nice to be out and about in Aberystwyth, and I will be returning to the town on several occasions during June this year, when we will welcome back the Knife Angel - a very impressive sculpture made from over 100,000 knives – to the Force area.

I was able to welcome the Knife Angel to Newtown, Powys in 2020, for its first visit to Wales. One of the key messages of the Knife Angel is prevention, alongside important anti-violence and anti-aggression messages. Throughout June, my team will be working alongside partners to deliver an engagement programme based on these key messages.

If you would like to get involved in this visit for June, please contact my office on email during May.

Thank you once again for taking time to read my bulletin. Please feel free to share wider, and if you have any questions, you are welcome to contact my Office.

Diolch yn fawr,

Dafydd Llywelyn

Police and Crime Commissioner

Ceredigion Community Engagement Day

On the 13th of April I visited Ceredigion as part of another Community Engagement Day where I met with several key partners, service providers, and members of the public.

During the day, I visited Aberystwyth University to observe and experience a virtual reality tool they have created around domestic abuse, followed by a visit to the Aberystwyth Justice Centre to visit the pre-trial Witness Suite and Court as well as meeting some of the staff that offer support to help witnesses give best evidence.

As well as visiting some of his Commissioned Services, DDAS, who provide substance misuse support service for adults, and New Pathways who provide rape crisis and sexual abuse support services, I also visit a property offered through my Integrated Offender Management Housing pilot scheme in Ceredigion – a project that is providing vital emergency rehab support to offenders.

Funding secured to target Violence Against Women and Girls and Community Safety at night-time economy hotspots

I was pleased to announce in April that I successfully secured additional funding from the Home Office’s Safer Streets fund to tackle violence against women and girls (VAWG) and community Safety in four areas within Dyfed-Powys.

A total of £45,000 of additional funding has been secured to increase safety of women and girls at busy night-time economy hotspots in particular.

The funding will go towards purchasing women’s safety kits, community Pop Up Safe Spaces and Training and Assessment for Licensed Premises.

I have highlighted in my new Police and Crime Plan the need for us to reduce violence against women and girls as we prioritise preventing harm to individuals and the communities of Dyfed-Powys, and I welcome the news of this additional funding that has been secured through my Office.

Giving victims a voice in influencing and informing local policing services

Through the work of the Dyfed-Powys Victim Engagement Forum, myself and Dyfed-Powys Police have given victims a voice in police training, by working closely with some of its members to produce a video which will be incorporated into Dyfed-Powys Police’s training.

Members of the Victim Engagement Forum were interviewed about their experiences with Dyfed-Powys Police. Each provided feedback on what went well and what did not go well, as well as the advice they would give to officers dealing with a similar case to theirs, and how their experience has affected their future interactions with the Force.

It is so important that victims’ and survivors get the support they need, and that their personal experiences are heard in order to influence, inform, and help to improve the local police services.

This video will help to ensure that police officers and staff are provided with a real-life perspective of victims’ views of the policing service.

Additional £15.7m to PCCs for Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence Support Services

During April the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) confirmed that Police and Crime Commissioners across England and Wales were able to bid for an additional £15.7 million for services supporting those who have experienced domestic abuse (DA) or sexual violence (SV) and a further £3.75 million for Independent Sexual and Domestic Violence Advisory roles.

In order to access the funding, PCCs were required to complete needs assessments that will provide the MOJ with an up to date picture of local need. As a result, I called on key partners and organisations that provide support services for victims of SV or DA in the Dyfed-Powys area to contact my Office for further details and guidance.

Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence is an issue that is more relevant now than ever before, and one which we must act quickly to address.

We need to ensure that we are doing everything we can to enable access to the right help and support for all victims.