Crime in Loughton St Mary's, Epping Forest

We’re taking a proactive approach to disrupt county lines and drug dealing in our district. Using community intelligence, we carry out targeted enforcement—focusing on known hotspots, individuals, and addresses linked to criminal activity.

This includes:

Stop and search where there’s reasonable suspicion
Warrants to search properties
Focused patrols and surveillance
Our goal is to break up criminal networks and bring offenders to justice.

We also work to reduce reoffending and support recovery. Where appropriate, we use:

Restorative justice
Out-of-court disposals
Support for those affected by drug use
Together, these actions help break the cycle of crime and vulnerability.

Crime data has helped us identify priority areas where violent crime is more likely to happen. We’re using hotspot policing to focus on these locations and times when issues are most common.

This includes:
Increasing visible patrols in key areas
Being present at times when incidents are more likely
Responding quickly to help keep people safe

We’re also working closely with local communities to gather intelligence. This helps us:

Identify those involved in violent crime
Take swift, focused action
Make sure our efforts are effective and community-led
Together, we’re working to reduce violence and make our neighbourhoods safer for everyone.

We’re taking firm action to reduce shoplifting and anti-social behaviour in Brentwood’s town centres.

To tackle this, our officers are:

Using Criminal Behaviour Orders (CBOs) to deal with persistent offenders. These are court orders that can ban individuals from certain areas or behaviours, helping to prevent further offences.
Working closely with local businesses to share information and coordinate responses
Focusing on key locations where offences are most common
This targeted, partnership-led approach is already making a difference - helping to deter crime and improve safety for everyone.

We want women and girls to feel safe, and to live and work in the District without fear of violence.
We will work proactively with our partners, using a full range of legislative and other tools around education programmes, perpetrator diversion, prevention, disruption and enforcement tactics.