Action to make Islington a safer place for all

Action is being taken to make Islington safer, with the council helping to take knives off the street, create more safe spaces, and tackle crime.

It's clear that an Islington where everyone feel safe and at home is a better place for all, and the council is working tirelessly to make it happen.

Steps that the council has taken, as part of its commitment to creating a more equal borough, include:

• Growing the number of Safe havens - welcoming spaces where people that feel threatened can get support - from 75 to 300 since 2021.

• Setting up a new Neighbourhood Patrol Team, who patrol the borough day and night seven days a week. Since the team started work last May they've carried out hundreds of patrols, providing a visible, reassuring presence.

• Issuing more than 4,700 fixed penalty notices for littering and fly-tipping, with 50 people prosecuted for littering and a business prosecuted for breaching a noise abatement notice.

• Creating a simple, new online form for reporting anti-social behaviour, with 60% of reports now coming through there.

• Setting up knife surrender bins across the borough - a safe, anonymous way to dispose of weapons. In total, more than 10,000 weapons have been taken off Islington's streets.

• Last year, the council installed a new bin capable of accepting larger weapons such as swords. Every knife gone could be a life saved and we've seen the percentage of young people affected by knife crime fall by two-thirds in the year leading to November 2025.

• Supporting 500 vulnerable people into accommodation or wellbeing services, through the Street Outreach Team.

• Working to reduce anti-social behaviour on the Andover Estate, which fell by over 50% in 2024 compared to 2023.

Cllr Angelo Weekes, Islington Council's Executive Member for Community Safety, said: "In Islington, safety is about making sure every resident feels protected, supported, and part of a thriving community.

"We know there is more work to do, and we will continue working closely with our partners and the police to build a borough where safety is shared, support is visible, and every resident can feel at home.

"Making our borough a safer place is integral to creating the more equal future we all want to see, and we're making it happen for Islington."

Despite the success of the measures already introduced, it's clear that more needs to be done to address anti-social behaviour.

That's why the council's community safety team has been delivering 400 community events and engagement sessions each year, focussing on women's safety, youth safety and hate crime awareness and prevention.

Meanwhile, a Hate Crime Prevention Officer has been introduced to support and empower communities impacted by hate crime.