MY FIRST full week in post as Acting Borough Commander has been a whirlwind of meetings.

The Metropolitan Police and Harrow are undergoing significant structural change in preparation for the Local Policing Model which will be in place later this year.

The objective of the new model is to improve the delivery of high quality policing services in a more effective and cost efficient way, in order to become the best police service in the world.

I am confident that Harrow has a great management team in place, capable of delivering this model in the borough.

Officer of the week is Marcus Pericleous.

Marcus, a trainee Detective Constable, works in the CID office and has shown promising detective ability, especially while investigating a serious grievous bodily harm which took place in South Harrow in May of last year.

His hard work and dedication have secured the conviction of a violent criminal who is to be sentenced later on this month at Harrow Crown Court.

Now that the days are getting longer and there is a hint of spring in the air, remember to continue making your homes look occupied when you are out by setting your lights to come on with a timer switch before dark and leaving a radio on.

We may be inclined to drop our guard as the evenings get lighter, however, we need to continue making life as difficult as possible for any would-be burglars.

Inspector Aiden Whelan and his team seized seven uninsured vehicles in the latest Operation Cubo, which took place in the borough last week.

Eight people were arrested for driving and immigration offences and theft of petrol.

The roadside checkpoints were set up on Northolt Road, Bessborough Road, and Greenhill Way and were in place between 6am and 7pm.

Operation Cubo ensures that our roads are safer and disrupts offenders that use their vehicles to commit crime in Harrow borough.

As a police officer you never know what you will be dealing with on a day-to-day basis.

Last week officers from Harrow’s C Team, led by Duty Officer, Inspector Mike Grady, were called to reports of a man on the roof of the St George’s shopping centre in Harrow town centre.

The police helicopter hovered over the town centre providing logistical support.

A man in his forties was treated for minor injuries and taken by our colleagues from the London Ambulance Service to hospital.

This incident caused some traffic disruption, however, we were able to keep people informed through our Twitter account @MPSHarrow.

The high price of metal, nationwide has resulted in an increase of thefts of copper and lead in particular.

Operation Ferrous is a pan-London initiative targeting registered and un-registered scrap metal dealers.

Last week officers visited all of Harrow’s dealers to ensure that their processes are in order to make life difficult for thieves and to reduce metal thefts on the borough.

The visits were successful, with the yards working with police to ensure that the correct regulations are being carried out.

A new campaign was launched by the Metropolitan Police this week to encourage Londoners to report suspicious activity that may be terrorist-related to the Anti-Terrorist Hotline on 0800 789 321. If you see or hear something that could be terrorist related, trust your instincts and call the confidential Anti-Terrorist Hotline and our specially trained officers will take it from there.

I have not been able to attend many community events yet, but I am looking forward to in the next few weeks and meeting as many of you as possible.