Making Lytham Road safe again – and bringing pride back to South Shore
This summer, we’re taking real action to make our high streets safer – and here in Blackpool, that starts with Lytham Road.
Once a vibrant part of our community, Lytham Road has struggled in recent years. I hear from residents and businesses all the time about the rise in anti-social behaviour, especially at night – people tell me they don’t feel safe walking home or locking up their shops. That’s not the community we want or deserve.
That’s why I’m proud that Lytham Road has been selected as a target area for the Safer Streets Summer Initiative – a national campaign led by Police and Crime Commissioners and Chief Constables, with support from the Home Office. From now until the end of September, police across more than 500 towns and cities will be stepping up their presence in crime hotspots. Here in Blackpool, that means more patrols, more enforcement and more support for local businesses and residents.
Lytham Road was identified through national data as a priority town centre area – but this decision also reflects the clear message I’ve been passing on from local people – we need change in South Shore and we need it now. The area has so much potential. There are still fantastic shops and organisations like Boathouse Youth doing brilliant work on Lytham Road and my constituency office is here too, because I’m committed to this area – and I want to help bring it back to life.
This isn’t just about cracking down. It’s about rebuilding. We’re not only putting police officers and PCSOs back on the beat, but also working to reconnect them with the people they serve. Under the last government, neighbourhood policing was gutted – the number of PCSOs halved and too many people went years without seeing an officer in their community. I know what that’s done to people’s trust and confidence. That’s what we’re working to repair with a named officer in every Blackpool neighbourhood coming soon.
Alongside Lancashire’s Police and Crime Commissioner Clive Grunshaw and local police leaders, I’ll continue to champion investment in South Shore. In my previous role as chair of Counselling in the Community, I helped transform a unit on Waterloo Road into a vibrant community hub offering mental health support. I’ve seen what we can achieve when we invest in our people and places. I want this summer to be a turning point – not just for policing, but for pride.
We all want to see Lytham Road thriving again. Safer streets are the foundation for a stronger community. With this new initiative and the government’s commitment to rebuild neighbourhood policing, I truly believe we can make that happen.
