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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SOUTH BANK PATROL PRAISED BY LAMBETH BOROUGH COMMANDER FOR RESPONSE TO WESTMINSTER TERROR ATTACK
London, 15 May 2017 - South Bank Patrol were thanked today by Lambeth’s Borough Commander for their role in Westminster attack, at a commendation event held at London’s historic County Hall.
South Bank Patrol officers were on duty at 3.41pm on 22 March and close to Westminster Bridge, when the attack started. Two members of the team were among the first people to arrive at the scene, helping the injured, cordoning off the area, sending curious and confused pedestrians off the bridge and liaising with all the security and emergency services.
Speaking to South Bank Patrol Officers today, Chief Superintendent Richard Wood, Lambeth’s Borough Commander, praised the team for their quick response on 22 March. He also commended them for their daily contribution to making South Bank a safer neighbourhood and visitor destination.
“South Bank Patrol were some of the first people to arrive at the scene, they acted quickly and calmly in a chaotic situation where members of the public and professionals can often struggle to think clearly. We are very grateful and commend the speed and selflessness with which they acted.”
Addressing the Patrol Team’s role in South Bank, Richard Wood added: “most people take community safety for granted, South Bank Patrol is a service that is now vital to South Bank life – for businesses, visitors, residents and employees”.
Govert Deketh, London Marriott Hotel County Hall General Manager and Chair of South Bank BID added:
“The London Marriott Hotel County Hall immediately recognised the need for a base and offered the hotel as an operational triage centre for the Patrol and Met Police. The nature of this event demonstrates how well people and organisations pull together and collaborate. The London Marriott Hotel County Hall is a member of South Bank BID, and we highly value the work the South Bank Patrol have done for the last nine years”.
South Bank Patrol is managed by South Bank Employers’ Group and funded through the South Bank Visitor Management Group - a public-private partnership of the major organisations in South Bank and Lambeth Council. Revenue for the service is generated from London Eye Section 106 revenue contributions, private contributions from South Bank Businesses and South Bank Business Improvement District (BID).
The Patrol team’s work is part of a vital network of security and safety services - provided by the same financial mechanisms and managed by South Bank Employers’ Group. This network includes a Met Patrol Plus team, and an Enforcement Officer, on secondment from Lambeth Council.
The South Bank Patrol Team works in collaboration with South Bank Business Watch – an innovative and highly effective group of security managers of South Bank organisations, meeting bi-monthly and reporting activities to Visitor Management Group and South Bank Partnership.
The work of the Patrol Team is coordinated and managed by Neil Haggertay, Head of Security, and Alex Valenzuela, Director of Public Realm, both at South Bank Employers’ Group and South Bank BID. ENDS - For more information and images please contact: Anastasia Fawcett, Communications Manager, South Bank Employers’ Group, 020 7202 6912,
Note to editors:
South Bank Patrol was founded in 2008 by South Bank Employers’ Group is funded – through South Bank Visitor Management Group – by revenue from the London Eye Section 106 agreement. It is also supported by additional and entirely voluntary contributions from business members, and by South Bank Business Improvement District (BID). It provides a highly visible street presence to deter crime and the fear of crime, reduce and eliminate illegal street trading, reduce anti-social behavior and engage with private security teams, police and other agencies throughout the area. South Bank Patrol continues to have an increasing impact on the area and is accredited for the Community Service Accreditation Scheme (CSAS) which allows the team to utilise designated police powers such as seizure of alcohol within a controlled drinking zone, and dealing with anti-social behavior and low level crime.
South Bank Employers' Group (SBEG) is a unique partnership of eighteen of the major employers in South Bank, Waterloo and Blackfriars with a long-term commitment to improving the everyday experience of the area for employees, visitors and residents alike. Over the past twenty six years, SBEG have helped transform a bleak and unwelcoming area into one of the most exciting destinations in the UK. We have dedicated teams which are focused on public realm (capital projects, neighbourhood management and maintenance, security, environmental sustainability), destination marketing, and employment and skills.
South Bank BID was set up by South Bank Employers’ Group in 2014 to improve the management of the area, in the face of increasing footfall and failing public spending. The BID covers the area from Lambeth Bridge to Blackfriars Bridge and back from the river to Waterloo Station and Stamford Street. The BID, which lies partly in Lambeth and partly in Southwark, was the first cross-borough BID organised under new regulations issued by government in September 2013.
Met Plus - The Metropolitan Police Service’s (MPS) current local policing model does not currently provide the degree of police visibility in our neighbourhood that is expected by stakeholders. A new scheme, Met Patrol Plus, provides uniformed police officers to be supplied on a ‘buy one, get one free’ basis within the South Bank BID area for a minimum of 3 years. The aim of the scheme is to enhance police visibility in the area and to reduce crime and anti-social behaviour. The officers will combine problem solving and direct enforcement activity to address the priorities of the South Bank. This includes unlicensed street trading, aggressive begging, street drinking, anti-social behaviour and the theft of personal property from people at venues. The police officers work closely with the area’s private security teams. This includes undertaking joint patrolling operations, in tandem with the South Bank Patrol.
South Bank Business Watch (SBBW) is a collaboration of commercial, cultural and public sector organisations focusing on security issues affecting the South Bank. The Group helps to ensure that local security and police resources are used effectively. SBBW acts as a coordinating body and consultative group for police and business security initiatives and is recognised as a leader in best practice for business security groups throughout London.