Police Constable Antonia Morgan and her colleagues on the Brierley Hill Neighbourhood Policing Team reduced reports of anti-social behaviour (ASB) relating to a group of young offenders by 100% over a five-month period. She has been nominated for a national Police Now ‘Alumni Impact Award’ for the work.

Antonia joined West Midlands Police via Police Now’s National Graduate Leadership Programme, a two-year neighbourhood policing programme which recruits, trains and supports talented graduates to reduce crime and ASB and build public confidence in policing.

When Antonia joined the neighbourhood team in November 2022, ASB was at an all-time high thanks to an unknown group of young offenders. Instances included harassing store workers, throwing bricks at windows, shoplifting and criminal damage.

Thanks to significant research and community partnership work to collate evidence, Antonia was able to identify the perpetrators and successfully bid for more CCTV in hotspot areas. She also worked with business owners on the High Street to encourage reporting and improve preventative measures.

Young perpetrators of ASB were issued with Community Protection Warnings and given opportunities to break away from the cycle of crime and change their behaviour. When the low-level offending of three individuals escalated from ASB to a violent assault and robbery, Antonia was able to swiftly identify and arrest them thanks to her research and engagement work.

As a result, reports of ASB relating to the group dropped by 100% over a five-month period. There were 25 reports relating to the group between July – November 2023 compared to 0 reports between November 2023 – May 2024. Since then, reports have remained consistently low, with only one recorded report of ASB relating to this group since May.

PC Antonia Morgan, who joined West Midlands Police via Police Now’s National Graduate Leadership Programme, said: “ASB has a significant impact on the quality of life for local residents and businesses, with store workers and community members subject to abuse, disruption, harassment and criminality.  

“A big part of this work was community engagement and increasing the visibility of the neighbourhood team, with increased patrols and partnership working. Where the young perpetrators showed an unwillingness to engage with the police or change their behaviour, a zero-tolerance approach was taken. Violent behaviour is completely unacceptable and serious incidents will be dealt with robustly.

“I am pleased by the progress we have made to reduce ASB across the area but we know the work is always ongoing to tackle ASB and ensure residents feel safe. I am also humbled by the Police Now award nomination and the support I’ve received throughout the programme and from my colleagues on the neighbourhood policing team – it’s certainly been a team effort.”

Dudley Police Partnerships Manager Inspector Sarah Long said: “This piece of work by Antonia and her team, alongside Dudley Partnerships department, has made a dramatic difference in the local community. The feedback has been really positive from residents, professionals and schools alike and it shows that taking a methodical approach to problem solving gets results.”

Police Now’s Alumni Impact Awards celebrate the achievements of officers nationally who have graduated from one of Police Now’s programmes and have gone above and beyond to reduce or solve crimes, problem-solve in their communities, or innovate and lead within policing. The winners will be announced in October at the annual awards ceremony.