In 2019, residents of Jaywick took matters into their own hands to secure their safety. They closed off alleyways that had become notorious hotspots for crime, including drug dealing, anti-social behaviour, and grievous bodily harm.

Similar actions have been taken by the community in Clacton-on-Sea due to the same issues.

These alleyways are not owned by Essex Highways and therefore are not maintained by them either. In fact they are unadopted alleyways. Meaning no-one owns them.

These unowned alleyways have become a breeding ground for illegal activities such as drug dealing and consumption, fly tipping, sexual activities and they serve as getaways for criminals. The situation has escalated to such an extent that residents don't feel safe in their own homes anymore and took action.

Since the alleyways have been shut off the crime in these areas has dropped significantly. Essex Highways are pushing the residents to re-open the alleyways, by the threat of issuing a Section 143 notice. This will put the residents safety at risk and have a negative impact on the community. 

  It also condones the behaviour of the criminals. Essex Highways do not own these particular alleyways that they are going to attempt to enforce open, they are known as unadopted land and this as been confirmed, in writing with Land registry and Essex County Council, and Highways themselves.

Essex highways do not maintain these alleyways.

There are various local initiatives, including the Safer Streets initiative, that has been directed mainly to the town of Clacton with a promise of CCTV cameras to help police and reduce crime. However, there are many other crime hotspots in the area which haven't been taken into consideration with the funding stream, and this includes the unadopted alleyways.

These alleyways are a health and safety risk, not just to the residents that live next to them, but also to the public.  They harbour dirty needles, faeces, glass, urination, fly tipping, drug dealing, sexual activities and motorbikes screeching through them at high speed.  These are just some of what the residents have reported. In some case there have been reports of stabbings, robbery and acid attacks. Our streets are safer with these alleyways closed. They serve no purpose and are dangerous, and are well known for the criminal activity undertaken.  

Tracking the crime we can demonstrate that since the alleyways has been closed there has been a significant decrease in crime on the road and the surrounding roads. 

·       From 2022 to 2023 there was a 13% decrease.

·       From 2023 to 2024 there was a 38% decrease.

The main shift has been listed in anti-social behaviour, possible weapons, and drug related crimes.

Less traffic and less car and motorbike racing including motorbike racing through the alleyways.

There are less parked cars. 

There has been less helicopters flying over.

There are less drunken fights and late-night noise and loitering and no more queues of addicts waiting for their drug dealer.

No more fly tipping

No more antisocial behaviour around the houses near the alleyways

There are no more sexual activities taking place.

The smell of weed has gone

There are no more queues of drug addicts waiting for their drug dealer to turn up.

There are also no more trespassers in the gardens and people hiding from crime.

For anyone that is believing that the alleyways should be opened , think of it this way.  You are condoning the criminal activity that took place in these alleyways. Even the police support closure of these alleyways as a solution to reducing crime.

Jaywick has also seen a significant reduction in crime since the alleyways were closed off in 2019.

When speaking with the local Cllr's they pass off any alleyway issues as an 'Essex County Council' Problem, even though they are supposed to represent the residents of Clacton on Sea.

Essex County Council don't take any responsibility for them as they don't own them.  A lot of these alleyways are unadopted, which means that Highways do not own them either. This is the case with the alleyways that have been closed off in Jaywick and Clacton. 

In other areas such as Merton, there is a local initiative that has been developed through a multi agency approach that reviews the alleyways in the area, in particular the ones that are the crime hotspots with a view of then gating them off to deter crime and protect the public. They have taken the this approach because of changes made to the Highway act that give powers to local council to take action.  Although it's no a straight forward process, Merton Council are taking the safety of their residents seriously.

There is a clear indication that urgent action is needed and we must not allow these alleyways to be reopened.  

In fact, all unadopted alleyways that are known for high criminal activity should be reviewed and closed off as a priority.

This is an expert from the Human Rights Act.

Article 8 Right to respect for private and family life
Everyone has the right to respect for his private and family life, his home and his correspondence.

There shall be no interference by a public authority with the exercise of this right except such as is in accordance with the law and is necessary in a democratic society in the interests of national security, public safety or the economic well-being of the country, for the prevention of disorder or crime, for the protection of health or morals, or for the protection of the rights and freedoms of others.

Part II        The First Protocol

Article 1 Protection of property
Every natural or legal person is entitled to the peaceful enjoyment of his possessions.

I would also like to add that;

All local authorities and certain other ‘responsible authorities’ (such as the Police), as listed under Section 5 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998, have a duty under Sections 6 and 17 of that Act, to implement crime reduction strategies in an effort to reduce overall crime in their administrative area.  As a responsible authority - this also applies to Essex Highways.

We call upon local authorities to take immediate action -  stop the section 143 notice being served,  AND to close off these alleys permanently , keep the closed alleyways, permanently closed, and to ensure regular patrols are conducted so that our neighbourhoods can once again be places where we feel safe. We urge you to sign this petition so we can reclaim our streets from criminal activity. This applies to alleyways that are unadopted, (not owned by anyone), have no through route to any public services, and are known crime hotspots.