100 people took part in South London's first ever joint conference of Christian police officers and community representatives, at St John's Church, Waterloo on Monday 7 February. "Building Bridges with the Community" was hosted jointly by the Bishop of Southwark, the Rt Rev Tom Butler, and Deputy Assistant Commissioner John Grieve, head of the Violent Crime Task Force. There were about 70 police officers with invited community leaders, who included clergy and specialist advisers in race relations and community relations.

Paperwork and bureaucracy often prevent police officers making direct and valuable contacts with members of the communities they serve, according to Assistant Chief Constable Matthew Baggott in his address to the conference. He was until recently a Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) officer in Peckham, and one of the senior officers at the time of the Stephen Lawrence murder. He headed the team which assisted the public inquiry and considered the implications for the police service. He is now in the West Midlands, but said the problems faced by police are similar in both regions.

With the Crime and Disorder Act and in the wake of the Stephen Lawrence case, Mr Baggott said there is a new situation which must be grasped. "The police service has a powerful role in making things better." The police need to be open-minded, not judgemental. They need to be 'guardians' of the people, ready and able to do something here and now about the problems people have, rather than just writing a report. They need to be regularly calling on people in local settings, building friendship and trust. "The public often say 'bring back Dixon', and it can work. If the Dixon image seems too soft today, we need a Dixon with 'Attitude'!"

The Bishop of Southwark also called for continued change of attitudes and growing collaboration between police and community. As visitors can now see from the Millennium Eye, he said, there are extremes of wealth and poverty in south London. "In the good city wealth is created and used for the benefit of all its citizens so that sufficient work, food, shelter and finance are available. ... In a good city all the agencies and institutions, statutory and voluntary, need to work in balance if there's to be hope for all."

The Bishop said that "racism, or fear of the stranger, goes deep in every person, and institutional racism goes deep in every institution." The Church is not exempt, he said. The MPS needed 'a hard-nosed tough copper' to address their position, and he commended Mr John Grieve's appointment. He added that the police showed a new approach in dealing with the Brixton nail bomb last year. "The officers in charge immediately set up a meeting of community leaders, trusted them with sensitive intelligence and worked with them in finding the perpetrator."

Christians have a great opportunity at this time to move forward with people of other faiths and cultures, the Bishop said. "We are all fellow pilgrims in the world."

The meeting heard from four other speakers. Debbie Welch, who is an officer of Southwark Diocese and a police adviser on community relations, told of her involvement in setting up a police 'surgery' in Peckham, to enable members of the public to contact officers unobserved. R David Muir, Executive Director of the Black Civic Forum, called for perseverance in mutual understanding and partnership. He said that Christians in the police service have a redemptive role to play. "You must make a difference. If you can't, do something else!"

Sgt Jim Brown, who has been involved in community policing in Greenwich since the Lawrence review, and is also a non-stipendiary Anglican priest, spoke of the new role for community policing in Eltham since the Macpherson report. He is closely involved with the local consultative group of 70 community representatives, nearly all from the local estates, but still only one is black. Chief Inspector Paul Hill, Borough Liaison Officer for Southwark, suggested that bridges in the community, like bridges that are physical structures, are built by understanding the forces of stress and strain. They need to be recognised, harnessed and turned to positive good.

Some participants raised points of criticism, notably the lack of resourcing for community work. Some said they felt confused about the Macpherson finding of institutional racism and how exactly to respond. Group feedback encouraged churches to use "Adopt a Cop", a project founded in Brixton to get churches praying for their local police. "Just spending time" summed up one group's response - in a hectic world, taking time for self and with others, especially people in the neighbourhood. Christian police officers should network with each other at work and also with church members in the area, was another suggestion. And Christianity should actually be recognised by senior officers as a skill in certain circumstances. Several groups praised this conference and called for other opportunities to meet.

Ends.

For further information contact: