How we work together to keep you safe
🤝 Armed police. Traffic. Dogs. Drones. Foot patrols.
🚔 Our dedicated teams work together around the clock to keep you safe.
❗ We’re working relentlessly to drive down crime and protect communities.
We're keeping you safe 24/7
🔴 No matter where you are, our mission is to keep you safe 24/7.
🔴 We're relentless in our pursuit of serious and organised criminals around the region.
🔴 Raids, searches, arrests, charges.
🔴 We don't stop.
🔴 Working in partnership, making communities safer.
How we work together to keep you safe
🤝 Armed police. Traffic. Dogs. Drones. Foot patrols.
🚔 Our dedicated teams work together around the clock to keep you safe.
❗ We’re working relentlessly to drive down crime and protect communities.
#NotComingHome | Harry's Story Part 4
"My heart just stopped. I knew something awful had happened."
These are the heartbreaking words of a mother who lost her son, Harry, to a reckless drink driver. Lola, Harry's sister, lost not just a brother, but her best friend.
No family should ever face this devastating loss and pain.
Heading out tomorrow to watch #England in the #Euro2024 quarter-final? ⚽️
Plan your safe ride home BEFORE you go out.
Book a taxi, designate a sober driver or stop over at a friend's house.
Think of Harry. Don't drink and drive.
Watch the full film and learn more about Harry's story ➡️ https://orlo.uk/png2n
#NotComingHome
Manchester bee
“The bee is a nice symbol and represents that violence isn’t good” – these are the words of a primary school pupil as the iconic Manchester Anti-Violence Bee Monument visited her school.
The symbolic monument is currently touring Walsall borough schools as part of an anti-violence campaign. Made from thousands of weapons, including knives and guns collected from the streets of Manchester, the monument, mounted on a triple-axle trailer, was originally situated in the city but is now touring the UK to offer anti-violence education.
Last week the Manchester Bee Monument visited Busill Jones Primary School in Bloxwich. Children were given the opportunity to get up close to the monument and it got pupils talking about knife crime and the consequences of carrying a knife.
And it certainly had an impact on pupils during its stay.
One pupil said: “The bee is a nice symbol and represents that violence isn’t good.”
Another pupil said: “It’s good to see it at our school. We have been talking about the bee, that it is made out of guns and knives and represents anti-violence.”
Full story here 👉 https://www.westmidlands.police.uk/news/west-midlands/news/news/2024/june/manchester-bee2/
#ResponsePolicing | Time is of the essence for our Response officers who are often the first ones to react to your urgent calls for help.
Our cops regularly respond to life-threatening situations, recent crimes or dangerous scenarios so it's crucial they arrive as quickly as possible.
To help us, we have a fleet of more than 340 specially-kitted Response vehicles so we can get to scenes within minutes of the initial call, and pursue suspects.
Each is fitted with specific technology to assist officers, the distinctive blue light bar on top of the car, and a siren which alerts the public we need to get through promptly.
It’s crucial our Response officers have vehicles ready to go and we recently expanded our fleet with over 60 new Toyota cars. It comes as we’ve boosted our officer numbers and continue with our recruitment drive.
The vehicles we use have changed and developed, alongside all modern technology, over the decades.
In the 1970s and 80s our officers would typically get behind the wheels of a range of Austin cars - from the Allegro, Maestro or Metro. In the 1990s it would most likely have been a Rover or Peugeot.
Then from the 2000s our officers would predominantly use a Peugeot, Ford Mondeo, Vauxhall Astra, Vectra or Insignia.
Nowadays you're likely to see officers in a range of different models from Volvo, Toyota, Peugeot and Vauxhall.
We're shining a light on our Response teams who work tirelessly across the region - in Birmingham, Coventry, Dudley, Sandwell, Solihull, Walsall and Wolverhampton - to protect the public and catch criminals.
You can find out more about #ResponsePolicing on our social media channels throughout the week.
We're also celebrating the 50th anniversary of West Midlands Police and we're marking this special occasion with a range of activity throughout 2024 to showcase our heritage and highlight how policing has changed and progressed.
This is being done in a variety of ways with regular features, events and activi
#ResponsePolicing | This week we’re celebrating the incredible officers who make up our Response teams.
Response officers are often the first on the scene of any incident, from collisions on the roads to domestic abuse incidents or burglaries in progress.
This week is Response Policing Week of Action, and we’ll be using the #ResponsePolicing hashtag to shine a light on the huge variety of jobs that Response officers attend.
We thought we’d kick things off by asking a handful of our Response officers how they’d sum up their roles in one word, and what they love most about it.
Assistant Chief Constable Claire Bell said: “I started my career on Response as all officers do and I know well the challenges, demands and of course the rewards of this unique role.
“Response officers are those who are first on the scene when the worst happens to people in our communities.
“The mix of bravery, resilience and compassion you have to use every single day is worthy of the highest respect and I hope this week we’re able to showcase that to you.”
Harry's Story | "My son's life was taken for the cost of a taxi”
"My son's life was taken for the cost of a taxi”
A drink driver stole Harry's future and left his family completely devastated.
Harry's death was preventable. A simple act like taking the keys away from the driver responsible could have saved him.
If you’re heading down the pub to watch #Euro2024 this evening, celebrate responsibly and be the friend who looks out for others.
If someone’s had too much to drink, stop them from getting behind the wheel. Your actions can save lives.
Plan a safe ride home - book a taxi, designate a driver or stop over at a friend’s house for the night.
Don't let a night out turn into a lifetime of regret. Think of Harry.
Watch the full film and discover Harry's story ➡️ https://orlo.uk/HNUSz
#NotComingHome #DontDrinkandDrive
Harry's Story | My son is never, ever coming home.
"My son is never, ever coming home."
Those are the words of a heartbroken mother, Claire, who lost her son Harry to a reckless drink driver.
Harry's dreams and the lives of his loved ones have been shattered forever.
Claire and her daughter Lola are bravely sharing their story to support our #NotComingHome campaign and raise awareness of the devastating impact of drink driving.
If you're heading down the pub to watch the #Euros2024 this evening and plan to drink, celebrate responsibly. Plan a safe ride home – book a taxi, designate a driver, or stay over at a friend's place.
Think of Harry. Don't drink and drive.
Click the link in the comments section to watch the full film and discover Harry's story ⤵️
“My son is never ever coming home” those are the words of a heartbroken mother whose son was killed by a drink driver.
Claire Chapman, along with her daughter Lola, is sharing Harry’s story as part of our #NotComingHome campaign to raise awareness about the devastating impact of drink driving and encourage people not to get behind the wheel.
Harry Chapman was two weeks away from celebrating his 21st birthday when he was killed by a drink driver, who was more than twice the legal limit and travelling at 97mph in a 30 zone along the Aldridge Road in Streetly.
Sharing her story with raw emotion, Claire hopes to change behaviour and prevent other families from enduring the same heartbreak.
Harry's dreams of travelling the world and building a future with his family were tragically cut short. Lola lost not just a brother, but her best friend that day.
"My son's life was taken for the cost of a taxi.” Claire says, the pain and anger raw in her voice when referring to the driver responsible for killing Harry.
The loss remains an open wound. Every morning, she opens Harry's curtains, a constant reminder of the life stolen from him.
Harry was full of life and had big plans for the future. Claire describes the heartbreaking goodbyes in the hospital room. It's a scene no parent should ever have to face.
"I talked to him and I gave him his last kiss. It was a goodbye that was never meant to happen." she recounts, her words heavy with the weight of loss.
Harry had been bowling with his sister and making plans to celebrate his 21st birthday with his best friend on the night of the crash on 7 October 2022.
After dropping his friend home, his car was hit by the drink driver who was travelling on the wrong side of the road.
The drink driver was sentenced to 11 years and three months in prison.
If you're stopped and fail a breathalyser test for alcohol or a DrugWipe test for illegal substances, you will face severe consequences.
A drink or drug driving conv
#OpAdvance | On Tuesday (21 May) officers from across Walsall and specialist departments joined forces with volunteers and members of the public as part of Operation Advance.
The operation saw an all-out approach to tackle crime and anti-social behaviour. We conducted warrants, made arrests and worked with partners to tackle the issues that matter most to you.
The day started with an early morning warrant in Leamore linked to misuse of drugs, where we arrested a woman and man after suspected stolen property and thousands of pounds were seized. We also arrested two men who were recalled to prison.
Our focus on road safety saw us carrying operations across the borough. This led to 11 vehicles being seized and drivers reported for a number of driving offences. We also carried out speedwatch operations and patrols to tackle parking issues.
We used a knife arch at the bus station and visit to the college and even used virtual reality headsets to focus on knife crime. Saving young lives and stopping knife crime was a key message throughout the day.
Our Special Constabulary also helped us visit public house to check on licensing conditions.
Operation Advance has given us the chance to show the great results we achieve by working closely with partner agencies and the public.
It has also shown the public the influence they can have on our work, not only by telling us the issues that matter most to them, but by working with us and helping us to come up with the solution.
So if there is an issue affecting you or your community, or you know the details of those linked to crime or the handling of stolen goods, then please report this to us.
Seven teens given life sentences for murder of Bailey Atkinson
#JAILED | Seven teenagers have today been jailed for life for the murder of Bailey Atkinson, who was brutally attacked with blades and machetes in Walsall last year.
In spite of open-heart surgery at the scene, Bailey died from multiple stabs wounds to his back, arms and legs.
Bailey had moved to Walsall from Coventry two years previously to escape a gang life style, but sadly became embroiled in Walsall’s own warring groups.
On the evening of 27 January 2023, Bailey was out with a female friend. A taxi dropped them in Walsall town centre and they were walking past the market stalls when a car swerved towards them.
Bailey told his friend to “run” as he also ran along the High Street.
There were two cars in convoy, a Toyota Verso and a Seat Leon, both had been stolen in previous days.
The nine occupants of both vehicles had met up on a supermarket car park shortly before they drove into the town centre looking for Bailey. It’s thought they sought him in retaliation for an attack on a brother of one of their number by Bailey two months previously.
They cornered Bailey and by Lower Hall Lane and drove at him.
Bailey managed to escape, but the cars circled and caught up with him further along the High Street where six of the occupants got out and attacked Bailey with machetes and zombie knives. Bailey didn’t stand a chance.
His attackers got back in the cars leaving him on the floor, one even stopped to try to take a photo of Bailey on his mobile phone, as he lay bleeding on the floor.
All occupants of the cars made off to Slater Street in Wolverhampton where the cars were found burnt out just minutes after the killing.
Police were at Bailey’s side in less than five minutes and began CPR, but sadly he was pronounced dead at hospital a short time later.
Detectives launched a meticulous investigation, examining hours of CCTV and mobile phone evidence, plotting each of the defendants’ movements to establish their part in Bailey’s murder.
In Ma
Our #SpecialsWMP are an integral part of our policing family.
Today they are joining us for #OpAdvance in #Walsall on a licensing operation.
Special Constables are volunteer police officers, who have the same powers as a regular officer.
If you’d like to join us visit https://www.west-midlands.police.uk/wmp-jobs/what-is-a-special-constable
Here’s Special Chief Inspector Sam Beckett to talk about today’s operation 👇
#OpAdvance | We've had a successful day making sure cars are fit for the road 👌
Let's hear more from our Walsall officers about today's MARSO 👇
#opadvance | Here's the moment we conducted a warrant in #Leamore this morning.
A 33-year-old woman and a 34-year-old man remain in custody on suspicion handling stolen goods.
We're working to tackle the issues that matter to you.
#OpAdvance | Policing’s a tough job, especially on days like today when there’s so much going on.
Deputy Chief Constable Scott Green is at Bloxwich Police station today with colleagues from Oscar Kilo UK, the National Police Wellbeing Service. They’re offering health checks and wellbeing advice for our officers, staff and volunteers while they’re on their break.
Working for an organisation that cares about you is another reason to join us. Here’s our current vacancies for officers, staff and volunteers 👉 West Midlands Police Careers (oraclecloud.com)
Op Advance comes to Walsall
#OpAdvance | Our policing operation focusing on the issues that matter to you, is back in Walsall today.
You will see extra officers on the streets from specialist departments and the wider force area in the borough today to support Operation Advance, which is an all-out approach to tackle crime and anti-social behaviour.
In the next 24 hours we’ll be focusing on enforcement, targeted activity, visibility and confidence.
We will be joined by partners and other officers from our dog section, our traffic department, our Safer Travel Policing Unit as well as local policing officers from Walsall and further afield.
Chief Inspector Lee Wiggan is leading today’s operation.
He said: "We’ll be conducting enforcement operations in the traffic arena, targeting off road bike usage. We’ll be looking at exploitation, knife crime and tackling drugs activity that you as a community are telling us are causing you problems.
“We will have a significant visible presence throughout the day, so if you see us please come and say hello.”
We’ll be sharing updates throughout the day on social media and our website, so follow us on Walsall Police Facebook and X as well as Tiktok and Instagram.
Why do people carry knives?
Why do people carry knives? Is it peer pressure, fear, or not knowing the consequences?
We asked Craig, Will, Nikita, and Paul what they thought as part of our new 'Let's talk about knife crime' podcast series.
The panel explore the realities of knife crime and the devastating impact it can have on you and your community.
In this episode, our speakers explore all the reasons people might carry a knife. They dispel myths that knives protect you and how knives can provide a false sense of security.
They also explore the consequences of knife carrying, going to prison, and the knock-on effects for your family.
#Watch below 👇
See the rest of the podcast by searching #LifeOrKnife or follow our channel to keep up to date with the latest video.
To mark National Stalking Awareness Week, which starts today (22nd April) a powerful new film has been launched.
The week-long initiative aims to raise awareness of the different forms stalking can take and empower victims to recognise the signs and seek help.
We've all seen it in movies: the "persistent" love interest who keeps showing up, somehow ends up knowing your every move, and magically wins your heart. But it’s time to ditch this dangerous narrative.
Life isn’t like the movies. Stalking and harassment are serious crimes which can have a devastating effect on the lives of victims and their friends and family.
Find out more https://shorturl.at/dnNQX
