Police chief Justin Burtenshaw on latest episode of Night Coppers

Brighton is a city famed for its inclusivity all year round, but there is something extra special about Pride weekend.

From a policing perspective the event was extremely successful, with no major incidents and some really great engagement with our local communities.

A number of officers, staff and volunteers also joined the Pride parade, in addition to the operational officers on-duty policing the event. As a force, we will continue to show our support for the LGBT+ community.

Many of our employees are members of it themselves – Sussex Police has the highest proportion of LGB officers in the country – and it is right that we highlight our role as an inclusive workforce that treats everybody the same regardless of who they are, what they believe or how they look.

The weekend brought a party atmosphere to the city, and that goes hand in hand with high levels of intoxication and drug use.

Viewers of the Channel 4 series Night Coppers will be well aware of the challenges our officers face in policing the night-time economy, when drink, drugs and lowered inhibitions lead to all manner of unpredictable situations.

How our officers respond to these interactions is crucial in managing tensions and reducing harm to our communities. Arresting people is not always the answer, but we will of course pursue enforcement where necessary.

Sergeant Andy Dunkling featured in the latest episode of Night Coppers

Officers responding to incidents have a range of powers at their disposal. For example there is a dispersal zone around Brighton and Hove every weekend – known as a Section 35 – that allows officers to order people who are misbehaving to leave the area. If they return, or don’t leave in the first place, they are subject to arrest.

We can also resolve a crime without going to court – for example community resolutions – and we saw several of these in Tuesday’s episode.

These are used to deal with low level offences, where a pragmatic outcome is agreed – often with the approval of the victim – that uses all the gears of the justice system and avoids channelling first time offenders into court, providing a satisfactory resolution all round.

This could be as simple as an apology, or an order to complete a rehabilitation course on, for example, anger management.

While recipients of community resolutions don’t receive criminal records, the incident is logged in our records as intelligence. Should they reoffend, they then face more serious consequences.

Not only does this empower victims by allowing them to have a say on how a matter is dealt with, it also offers a second chance to offenders who may have had a momentary lapse in judgement that does not necessarily warrant a criminal record that will have a profound impact on their lives.

There are many benefits to a community resolution. By dealing with the matter promptly, it allows our officers to dedicate their time to more serious offences, while ensuring the victim gets justice, and the offender is diverted with a view to changing their behaviour and reduce reoffending.

Night Coppers is currently showing on Channel 4

Research commissioned by the National Police Chiefs’ Council found a 43 per cent increase in victim satisfaction where community resolutions are administered. No need to wait for a sometimes lengthy court process – justice is immediate. They are also a powerful tool in combating reoffending. Perpetrators instantly face the consequences of their actions and can be diverted to rehabilitative services that can keep them from an escalation in offending.

The NPCC research shows rehabilitation programmes can result in up to a 40 per cent reduction in reoffending. This reduces demand on officers, prisons and the criminal justice system, ultimately freeing up their time and resources to go towards more pressing matters.

Viewers of Tuesday’s episode will have seen community resolutions given out for incidents involving the possession of drugs.

We dedicate significant resources to tackling the supply of drugs, identifying perpetrators, disrupting their operations and bringing them to justice.

It showed the effectiveness of community resolutions in action. Promptly dealing with low level offences freed up Sergeant Andy Dunkling’s time to stop a suspicious vehicle, seize a significant amount of Class A drugs and cash and launch an investigation into the supply of drugs into the city.

Finally, I would like to offer my assurances that, despite what some scenes may suggest, officers don’t always eat kebabs – fish and chips, burgers and chicken are also on the recommended late turn dinner list. As you can see from Night Coppers, they need to grab food when they can but rarely get to finish it.