Greater Falls
The neighbourhoods within West Belfast patrolled by the Greater Falls Neighbourhood Policing Team are divided into four beat areas:
- Distilleries and R.V.H.
- Divis
- Clonard
- St. James
Distilleries and R.V.H. - This beat is bounded by the Westlink, Broadway, Falls Road and Grosvenor Road to include the Royal Victoria Hospital complex.
Divis – The Divis beat area is bounded by Grosvenor Road, Falls Road, Divis Street, Millfield, College Avenue, College Square North, Durham Street, and Grosvenor Road.
Clonard – The Clonard beat area starts at Conway Street and extends towards the Springfield Road, Falls Road junction, and continues along the Springfield Road to Lanark Way, along the peace line back to Conway Street.
St. James – The St James beat area includes the areas within the boundary of Broadway, M1 motorway, Kennedy Way, Andersonstown Road, Falls Road back to Broadway.
The Greater Falls Neighbourhood Policing Team are based at Grosvenor Road Police Station.
Each beat area has a dedicated neighbourhood constable, with a sergeant leading the team.
- Your Neighbourhood Policing Team
- Contact us
- Get involved
- You said - We did
- Neighbourhood Watch / District Policing Partnership
- Neighbourhood News
Your Neighbourhood Policing Team
| Name of Officer | Mobile Telephone Number | Neighbourhood Patrolled |
| Sergeant McKenna | 07500 904 360 | Sergeant, Greater Falls Team |
| Constable Quaile | 07825 180 192 | Distilleries and Royal Victoria Hospital. |
| Constable Crimmins Constable Anderson Constable Gallagher Constable McKay Constable Nicholl | 07787 423185 07825 235453 07787 425903 07787 423213 07826 899658 | Lower Divis, Durham Street, Barrack Street, College Square North areas. |
| Constable Patton Constable Allen | 07787 423 395 | Clonard area. |
| Constable McGrath Constable Latta | 07787 426 992 07787 423 090 | St James area. |
Each Neighbourhood Team within West Belfast also has Liaison Officers dedicated to the groups and activities outlined below. Citizenship and Safety Education / Schools Liaison Officer Minority Liaison Officer In an emergency always use 999. If you are reporting a crime or require police response following an incident please dial 0845 600 8000. Local neighbourhood officers can be contacted to discuss non urgent community partnership/engagement issues in your local area. When a neighbourhood officer is not available to take your call you may leave a message. If it is not an emergency and you believe another officer can assist you, please ring 0845 600 8000. Neighbourhood Policing Team e-mail: NPTGrosvenorRoad@psni.pnn.police.uk |
Contact us | ||
| Neighbourhood Policing Team Contact Telephone | 02890 700587 | |
| Crime stoppers Telephone Number | 0800 555 111 | |
| Emergency Telephone Number | 999 | |
| Non-emergency Telephone Number | 0845 600 8000 | |
| Text Number | 07500 904 360 | |
| NPTGrosvenorRoad@psni.pnn.police.uk |
Grosvenor Road Police Station is accessible 24 hours a day.
Details of other agencies who may be of assistance to you:
| Agency | Telephone Number | Email Address |
| Belfast City Council (BCC) | 02890 320202 | generalenquiries@belfastcity.gov.uk |
| BCC Noise Control | 02890 373006 | envhealth@belfastcity.gov.uk |
| District Policing Partnership West Belfast sub-group | 02890 270684 | dpp@belfastcity.gov.uk |
Citizens Advice Bureau |
| ecentralbelfast@citizensadvice.co.uk fallscab@citizensadvice.co.uk suffolkandandersonstowncab@citizensadvice.co.uk enorthbelfast@citizensadvice.co.uk eshankill@citizensadvice.co.uk |
| Victim Support | 02890 244039 | info@victimsupportni.org.uk |
Housing Executive (NIHE) | 03448 920900 General Enquiries | belfastnorth@nihe.gov.uk belfastwest@nihe.gov.uk belfastshankill@nihe.gov.uk |
| Women’s Aid | 0800 917 1414 | info@womensaidni.org |
| The Samaritans | 08457 909090 | jo@samaritans.org |
| Childline | 0800 1111 | nireland@childline.org.uk |
| Age NI | 0808 808 7575 | |
| Contact | 0808 808 8000 | |
| Forum for Action on Substance Abuse (FASA) | 02890 803040 | info@fasaonline.org |
| Lighthouse | 02890 755070 | info@lighthouseireland.org |
Get involved |
| You can get involved with helping us to make your neighbourhood safer by telling us the issues that you think need to be addressed by attending one of your local partnership meetings. |
| Method of engagement | How to find out more |
| West Belfast Drugs and Alcohol Forum | Meetings take place on a monthly basis. Speak to Sergeant McKenna on 02890 700584 for more details. |
| DPP Meetings in Public | Speak to a local neighbourhood officer, or a member of your local DPP, or alternatively you can telephone the DPP on 02890 270684 |
| Youth and Sport Clubs | Neighbourhood officers work with various youth and sports clubs in the Greater Falls area. For more details please contact Sergeant McKenna. |
| Pizza With Peelers Project | Young people engaging in debate with local police on a wide range of issues. For more details please contact Sergeant McKenna. |
| Citizenship and Safety Education (CASE) | Presentations to young people through schools and educational groups. For more details please contact Constable Quaile or Constable Hunter. |
| Residents Groups | Neighbourhood officers engage regularly with residents groups to discuss and tackle community concerns. Details of groups are listed below, for further information please contact Sergeant McKenna. |
| Contact your neighbourhood police officers for more details of where and when your next meeting will take place. If you are unable to come along to a meeting but have an issue that you would like to let us know about, please phone us on 0845 600 8000 Extension 21587, or direct on 02890 700584, or send us an email at NPTGrosvenorRoad@psni.pnn.police.uk |
You Said We Did
Lower Falls Community Surgery
Constable Quaile, a member of Grosvenor Road neighbourhood team recently organised a surgery which was held in partnership with the Grosvenor Road Community Development Group. This event was the first surgery held in the Lower and Greater Falls areas, involving a multi agency approach to tackling community issues.
This event was attended by NIHE, BCC and Victim Support, including a number of police officers from various departments who have responsibility within the local area attended including members of the Community Safety, Road Policing, Youth Diversion Officer, CID and Neighbourhood Officers.
The surgery proved to be excellent opportunity to engage with residents who were then able to discuss their concerns with the relevant agencies and organisations. Feedback received has been encouraging and the event was considered to be a great success, which was well attended by the Lower Falls Community.
Community Safety Surgery
On the 21st February the Grosvenor Road neighbourhood team organised a Community Safety Surgery held at Grosvenor Recreation Centre, aiming to provide an opportunity for members of the local community to meet with statutory agencies to discuss community concerns.
This surgery involved several agencies including NIHE, Victim Support, BCC, Roads Policing and CRJI. The event was well attended by members of the community, to include visitors from the Lower Falls and Divis areas.
Anti Burglary Patrols
In recent months officers with responsibility for the West Belfast area have carried out a number of dedicated anti burglary patrols in hotspot areas. Between January – March 2012 160 anti-burglary operations have been carried out across West Belfast targeting hotspot areas aiming to reduce burglary activity. Local neighbourhood officers continue to distribute anti burglary leaflets to homes and deliver burglary prevention guidance though local community groups.
Neighbourhood officers with responsibility for the Woodbourne area have been delivering leaflets and burglary prevention information to local Neighbourhood watch and church groups. Officers have also been involved in house to house enquires in areas where burglaries have taken place. It is hoped this engagement will continue to ensure that key crime prevention messages are communicated to residents throughout the local area and reduce the opportunities for people to be victims of these crimes.
Deaf Link Officer
Constable Taylor, a neighbourhood officer based at Woodbourne is the Deaf Link officer within A, B and C Districts which involves reviewing communication through the PSNI Emergency Text Service for the Deaf, Hard of Hearing and Speech Impaired. Constable Taylor reviews all reports received through the emergency text service to a certain appropriate police response, working in partnership with the Sensory Support Team of the Belfast Health Trust to establish contact and home visits as required. In recent months Constable Taylor has been involved in a number of anti social behaviour reports through this system ensuring that appropriate support is received by vulnerable members of the community.
Interface Patrols
Work continues at interface areas across West Belfast, officers have increased foot patrol visibility in recent months, in an effort to combat anti social behaviour in the area and increase engagement with members of the local community. Officers have been talking with parents to increase their awareness of interface activity involving young people, it is hoped this increased partnership will encourage young people not to participate in interface violence.
Tackling Car Crime in West Belfast
Police officers in West Belfast have been focusing on interventions that can contribute to a reduction in car crime. Activity has ranged from paying close attention to prolific offenders and providing crime prevention advice to motorists, who may be at risk from having valuables stolen from their vehicles.
In one particular incident, where a Mazda MX-5 was stolen and driven erratically, mounting footpaths and spinning on the road in front of homes in the Ross Road area, police persistence resulted in two males being arrested in connection with the incident.
As a result of the strenuous objections to High Court Bail, which were made by an officer from the Grosvenor Road Crime Team, the Judge acknowledged that there was ‘clear evidence of the possibility of serious further offences being committed’ and ‘the clear risk to public safety’, and subsequently the bail application was refused.
Commenting on the matter Inspector Watton said, “We have and continue to make a concerted effort to tackle car crime. A focused crime prevention campaign has been implemented in the Lower Falls area to make car owners aware of the need to remove valuables from sight and we are using all channels available to maintain our focus on identified prolific offenders, who steal vehicles. The joined up approach by the Auto Crime Team, Response, Neighbourhood Teams and CID is having a positive impact.”
ASB, Clonard Area
Constable Allen made contact with Clonard House, Clonard Gardens, as residents were making complaints that young people were gathering in the front porch of the residence and that it was leading to ASB problems. The Crime Prevention Officer, Constable Connolly, visited and spoke with the residents and supplied them with attack alarms.
Inspector Watton and Constable Allen also attended a meeting at the Community Restorative Justice Ireland offices on the Springfield Road with Clonard residents. This meeting mainly dealt with the issues of young people playing football in the street. At the time of report, this initial response has been successful though Constable Allen continues to monitor the area.
In an effort to develop relationships and increase preventative policing, Constables Patton, Allen and Hunter made contact with Clonard Youth Club to introduce themselves as the local Neighbourhood officers for the area. It is hoped that new initiatives will develop with Clonard Youth Club in the months ahead.
Crime Prevention in Partnership, Royal Victoria Hospital
Constable Quaile continues to maintain regular contact and have monthly meetings with the Royal Victoria Hospital duty manager and security teams. Building work at the new A&E department continues and little in the way of crime reporting has been noted. Regular contact is maintained with contractors to ensure that any issues raised are resolved straight away. Following the closure of Belfast City Hospital A&E, which has resulted in increasednumbers attending the RVH, officers have increased foot and vehicle patrolling around the hospital at times of high footfall.
Redevelopment Proposals
Building work is about to commence on the grassy area at the bottom of Blackwater Way running parallel with the Westlink where 13 proposed new houses will be built. Constable Quaile, the Neighbourhood officer for the area, has been in several meetingswith the building contractors and community representatives regards the proposed time scale and the plans to secure the site, as this boarders one of the interface areas with the Village in South Belfast and potential for unrest during the summer months may be an issue.Demolition work is on going in the Arundel area where older premises are being removed to make way for the new buildings. Engagement is ongoing with local representatives, youth workers and contactors to ensure issues are addressed prior to incidents arising.
Plans are also at an early stage regarding a community garden/allotment on Distillery Street beside the new 3G football pitch. Funding for this project is currently limited with BCC making the greatest contribution however police are also attempting to identify additional funding sources. The project, once complete, will provide an area that can be enjoyed by all local residents.
Reducing ASB and Building Relationships
Constable McKay, a Grosvenor Road Neighbourhood officer, secured funding for Immaculata Amateur Boxing Club for a new initiative involving local teenagers and police officers engaging in a series of programmes and events together over a six month period. The £4940, obtained through a successful application to the PSNI Policing with the Community fund, will enable local officers to develop further links with the community and build positive, personal relationships with young people from the Divis area. Traditionally, the Divis area has been a focal point for antisocial behaviour, and it is hoped that such programmes, which facilitate engagement and education, will contribute to a reduction in ASB and enhanced relations with police.
Domestic Abuse Update
The Domestic Abuse Unit continues to attend the Multi Agency Risk Assessment Conference (MARAC) Operational group which allows discussion of practice and practice issues and the sharing of information aimed to promote consistent good working practices. Officers have also been in attendance at the Domestic violence Partnership which aims to increase awareness and reduce incidents of Domestic Violence. The website for this partnership can be viewed at www.belfastdvp.co.uk which has many links to supportive groups and agencies.
A review of working practices within the Domestic Violence Unit has been conducted and plans are underway to create a more investigative aspect to the Domestic Abuse office from April 2012. It is anticipated the changes will assist local officers to improve the service they deliver by providing both support to victims of domestic crimes and targeting high risk offenders.
A District has referred 272 victims through the MARAC process between April 2011 and March 2012.
Domestic Violence Awareness Presentation
On 9th March 2012 a Domestic Abuse Officer attended Belfast Metropolitan College alongside our Women’s Aid representative who is attached to the A District Domestic Abuse office. A presentation was given to student social workers on the role of both the Domestic Abuse Unit and Women’s Aid which provided the students with an opportunity to gain insight into the different roles, responsibilities and provisions of a multi agency approach to tackling domestic violence.
Neighbourhood Watch / Residents Groups / District Policing Partnership
Neighbourhood Watch
Police are keen to be involved in and assist with Neighbourhood Watch groups across West Belfast. Should anyone be interested in starting up a Neighbourhood Watch in their local area, please speak to your local Neighbourhood Sergeant. Contact details are on these pages.
Residents Groups
The following residents groups sit within the Greater Falls Community Safety Forum, and they are listed alongside their local police officers who can be contacted on the numbers on this page for more details:
Falls Residents Association - Constable Anderson, Constable Gallagher, Constable McKay
St Marys Residents Association - Constable Anderson, Constable Gallagher, Constable McKay
Grosvenor Residents - Constable Quaile
Clonards Residents Association - Constable Allen
St. James Forum - Constable Latta, Constable McGrath
Iveagh Residents Association - Constable Latta, Constable McGrath
District Policing Partnership
Councillor Tim Attwood is the Chair of the West Belfast Sub-Group of the Belfast District Policing Partnership.
DPP Contact Details:
Belfast District Policing Partnership, North Belfast Sub-Group
City Hall
Donegall Square
Belfast
BT1 5GS
Telephone: 02890 270684
E-Mail: dpp@belfastcity.gov.uk
Neighbourhood News
A District Newsletter
Edition 1, December 2011 (PDF, 610.3 KB)
Policing with the Community activities in North and West Belfast
Crime Prevention advice for a Safe Christmas
Contact details for local police
Community Minutes
Upper Springfield Community Safety Forum Falls Park Minutes - 24 May 2011 (PDF, 26.8 KB)
Upper Springfield Community Safety Forum Falls Park Minutes - 21 Jun 2011 (PDF, 119.3 KB)
Last updated:
24 April 2012
