Northumbria Police has launched a new initiative to rebuild public trust in Jesmond and Newcastle, identifying community confidence as one of its top five priorities in its 2025 strategy.

But among some Jesmond residents, trust is already worn thin. Resident Carrol Jackson voiced her frustration at the police. “At Sainsbury’s in Jesmond a few years ago, kids were threatening to stab the staff who were of a different gender,” she said. “The police told them there was nothing they could do till someone was injured, which is absolutely shocking. The police are useless, and it’s no wonder nobody trusts them.”

Other residents, such as Thomas Gannon, 21, had a more positive view of the police in Jesmond. He recognised the police try to “ensure a positive balance of competing public interests between those of family residents and the ever-growing student circle,” pointing to their efforts to control noise levels from student parties and the drinking culture within some parts of Jesmond.

Gannon said he thought Jesmond had “a safe and warm atmosphere where all groups feel guarded” thanks to the police.

This new initiative comes after public trust in the police has fallen nationwide, especially after the summer of 2025, which proved particularly turbulent for Northumbria Police. In recent months, the region has seen a sharp rise in hostile rhetoric aimed at certain faiths, races and migrants, both on the streets and across social media. In Jesmond, some residents have directed hostility towards the Northumbria Hotel, which was used to house asylum seekers but has recently stood empty following public pressure and renovation works.

The issue has fuelled divisions within local communities, cutting across age groups, neighbourhoods and social backgrounds. Protests linked to this tension took place nationwide, including in Newcastle.

A College of Policing report notes that public trust in police fairness and “general trustworthiness” has fallen significantly in recent years. In England and Wales, for instance, measures of trust dropped sharply in the four years leading up to 2023/24.

A report from POST, the parliamentary think-tank, says that in October 2024, 52% of adults said they had no or not very much confidence in the police to tackle crime locally. This compares to 39% in October 2019, highlighting a significant rise in those lacking confidence in their local force.

Despite the police’s ongoing efforts to defuse demonstrations, tackle online hate crime and prevent potentially violent unrest, officers have increasingly found themselves the target of public anger and media criticism. Over the summer, a narrative began to emerge in some quarters portraying the police as an oppressive institution.

A small clutch of commentators, such as those critical of hate-crime legislation or “political correctness”, have taken to invoking Orwell’s “thought police“. For example, when the Metropolitan Police recently announced it would no longer investigate non-crime hate incidents, headlines promptly branded officers “the thought police”. Critics have weaponised the phrase to portray law enforcement as part of an Orwellian state, further eroding public trust.

That loss of confidence is also evident in Jesmond, where trust in the police has noticeably slipped.

The College of Policing has also acknowledged that rebuilding community ties is vital. One of its main approaches is delivering the Government’s Safer Streets programme, which aims to cut serious violence and boost public confidence in both policing and the wider criminal justice system.

In its latest guidance, the College identifies neighbourhood policing as a key priority, with a focus on “carrying out effective problem-solving to tackle the issues that matter the most to local people, having a targeted visible presence in crime and anti-social behaviour hot spots or places with low trust, and building community engagement to identify the crime and anti-social behaviour issues that matter to people locally.”

As part of its drive to strengthen community engagement, Northumbria Police holds monthly drop-in sessions at Jesmond Library, which it says will create “opportunities for contacting, listening and engaging with communities to increase confidence”.

A Police Community Support Officer (PCSO), who asked to remain anonymous, attended the most recent session in November and explained why these events are vital for rebuilding ties and reassuring residents that officers are still very much part of the community:

“We do this [Police drop-in session] once a month because we only work occasionally, and sometimes people have grievances or concerns. We provide them with the opportunity, once a month, to come in and raise any issues they may have. It’s a chance for people to drop in if they want to learn more about what we do and how we can help them.

“When it comes to community relations, we aim to serve every part of the Jesmond population and help signpost people to the right agencies. These drop-in sessions aren’t for reporting crimes, although if someone does want to, we can provide information on how to go about that.

The police officer had also mentioned that residents should not hesitate to contact the police, no matter how small they think a matter is.

“We want to remind the public that the police are here, and we will respond,” they said. “I remember a call I attended involving an elderly woman whose car had been burgled; all that was taken was a pound coin. When I arrived, her neighbours came out to speak to me, saying their cars had also been opened and items stolen.

They added: “It doesn’t matter how small you think an offence is – report it. Doing so allows us to look into it, and if it coincides with patterns we’ve been seeing in the area, it could actually help us catch an offender.”

In a bid to rebuild public confidence, Northumbria Police has widened its engagement methods and has started a recent initiative, including a recent trial allowing some reports to be made via Facebook comments.

As new initiatives aim to rebuild public trust in Jesmond and beyond, fresh channels are opening up for police and residents to engage in better dialogue, which could prove key to restoring confidence among locals.

What are your thoughts on the police and their efforts to rebuild public trust? Are they doing enough, or too little? Share in the comments below.