By Amy Hopkins

A women's group has urged Brighton and Hove City Council to increase CCTV in Hangleton to reduce robberies targeted towards Bengali people in the area.

The Ladies Multicultural Group told the council’s community safety forum in December about their concern over the number of robberies targeted at the Bengali community in Hangleton, highlighting that one of their main worries was a lack of CCTV cameras.

Mumtaz Ahmad, a member of the group, said since the meeting, the council has so-far made no such provisions for CCTV.

She said: “People have been afraid to leave their houses, and some people have installed their own security systems.

“The police came to our local coffee morning on the January 17. Even though they were really nice and gave good tips, not much else has been done.”

Ms Ahmad said that the robberies began in November 2012 and that she felt the Asian community have been targeted because of their valuable possessions.

The forum said that police have increased patrolling and prevention in the area.

Members of the forum's partnership community safety team are currently seeking to meet with the ladies group to discuss the best way of reducing crime in the area.

The next forum meeting will take place this Monday, February 25 in Hove Town Hall at 4pm.

The meeting has a regular slot for community representatives to raise or follow-up on any issues.