Nearly 70 community protection warnings, which aim to stop anti-social behaviour, have been issued in West and South Devon in around a year.

Borough councillors have heard the warnings are helping to reduce crime and disorder and have had a positive effect on neighbourhoods.

The South Devon and Dartmoor Community Safety Partnership (CPS), which is made up of local authorities, police, fire, justice, health and voluntary sectors, says 93 per cent of people subject to such warnings have not come to their attention subsequently.

Community protection warnings are usually issued to deter people from causing harassment, intimation and other anti-social behaviour or stopping disputes between neighbours escalating.

They can be issued by the police and PCSOs and officers of local authorities and can escalate to more formal action if people don’t comply.

Speaking to West Devon Borough Council’s overview and scrutiny committee, representatives from the partnership which covers West Devon, South Hams and Teignbridge said they were “incredibly proud” of the pilot project which was “leading the way” across the Devon and Cornwall Police area.

Community and safeguarding manager at Teignbridge District Council Rebecca Hewitt said the 68 warnings had been useful in dealing with entrenched problems which had been going on for a number of years.

They had stopped exploitation and the smell of cannabis coming from properties in West Devon.

“We can use them in a broad range of ways,” Ms Hewitt said. “We are leading the peninsula on this. It’s really important in the reputation of the local council.

“We are getting really good feedback from partners in the community.”

Community Safety Partnerships (CSPs) have a legal responsibility to work together to protect their local communities from crime and to help people feel safe. They tackle issues including anti-social behaviour, drug or alcohol misuse..

Work by the South Devon and Dartmoor CPS this year has also involved delivering awareness sessions for professionals on topics including gaming and gambling, exploitation prevention, diversity and hate crime, suicide prevention and serious and organised crime awareness, with 775 people attending the sessions. They were also available on a CSP YouTube channel.

A programme called ‘Let’s Talk’ has been developed to raise parents’ awareness of risks and challenges faced by young people. It runs sessions for specific parent and carer groups including parents of teenagers, pre-teens, primary children and those with special educational needs or who may be neurodivergent.

To fund the CSP’s work, bids are made to the Home Office, police and crime commissioner and other bodies, with £8,000 secured in the current financial year for the community protection warning pilot and £27,000 for Let’s Talk.

The overview and scrutiny committee praised the partnership and asked that gender-based violence be prioritised in rural communities. Cllr Holly Greenberry-Pullen (Lib Dem, Tavistock North) said such problems are “ well hidden”.