West Midlands Police issue five lockdown dispersal notices to one person

And a further eight people from across the region have been told to disperse on four separate occasions, papers from a police meeting have shown.

Speaking during the West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner’s (PCC) strategic policing and crime board meeting on Tuesday, May 19, Deputy Chief Constable of West Midlands Police Louisa Rolfe revealed the force have issued a total of 1,755 ‘directions to leave’ since the start of the lockdown.

These directions to leave are not fines in themselves, but often preceed the issuing of a fine, with further action taken if the person in question refuses the order.

A total of 475 fines have also been issued across the West Midlands during lockdown, with the data being recorded using an app exclusive to West Midlands Police.

Ms Rolfe said: “One thing we’re quite proud of in our response is developing an app for directions to leave.

“And we are the first force in the country to develop this. We are monitoring the number we’ve issued, so to date, when we submitted our paper, 1,755 directions to leave had been issued, and I believe to date we’ve issued 475 fixed penalty notices.”

The force has also been recording the numbers of complaints they have received from members of the public related to Covid-19.

There have been a total of 75 complaints as of April 24.

These included 22 for police not responding to reports of lockdown breaches, 17 were for other Covid-19 related complaints, 17 were for the way individuals were treated when enforcement was being carried out, 14 were for officers not adhering to guidelines and/or not appearing to have correct personal protective equipment (PPE) and/or coming into contact with public and putting them at risk, and 5 were for social media releases.

Reflecting on the figures PCC David Jamieson said: “Overall the compliance with the lockdown in the West Midlands has been very good.

"Over several weeks and across a population of over three million people, only 1,755 have been directed to leave due to breaking social distancing rules.

“After engagement only a small proportion of those people have had to be fined. I would like to pay tribute to our force for the excellent work it has done and the pragmatic approach it has taken to maintain public support.”