A SPECIAL police unit which responds to incidents such as domestic abuse and child abuse has been moved out of Enniskillen Police Station to Omagh in yet another shake up by the PSNI.

There are currently proposals to remove the road policing unit from Fermanagh and last week this newspaper revealed plans by police to relocate its specialist anti-terrorism unit as well. Now it has emerged that the Public Protection Unit, which had been based at Enniskillen Police Station, has been relocated to Omagh Police Station after an internal review of its structures and processes.

Councillor Keith Elliott of the Democratic Unionist Party has urged the PSNI to outline the future of policing in Fermanagh amid what he described as “a growing concern” within the community.

“It has been reported that the Tactical Support Unit, so important in the fight against the dissident republican threat, will be taken out of Fermanagh. This has undoubtedly left our county, which is known to have a dissident Republican presence, more vulnerable to attack and to terrorist activity. A situation that is entirely unacceptable. We also have growing speculation that Road Policing Unit is set to be moved out of Fermanagh and could be based as far away as Portadown. At a time when we continue to have far too many fatalities on the roads of Fermanagh, if this move is to go ahead it can only mean a reduction in how effective the policing of our roads will be.

“Earlier this year, with little publicity, the vital work of the Public Protection Unit, which included the work of Domestic Abuse Unit, was taken out of Enniskillen to a new base in Omagh. Last December Inspector Roy Robinson told us that ‘domestic abuse is a priority for the police and we are committed to bringing those responsible to justice, while ensuring victims and their families receive the necessary support.’ Yet six months later the dedicated suite in Enniskillen was closed and the dedicated officers moved to Omagh. What we need from the PSNI is a frank assessment of where they see the future of policing in Fermanagh,” he said.

Councillor Elliott, a member of the Fermanagh Policing and Community Safety Partnership, says he is “very concerned” about the relocation of services and wants answers from the PSNI.

“We need to know what other aspects of the local policing operation are being considered for redeployment elsewhere. Does Enniskillen Police Station have a long term future? Against a backdrop of more and more services being withdrawn, there are growing fears that our local police stations, those that are left, are also under threat and are being allowed to wither on the vine. I urge the PSNI to give clarity,” he said.

Kerry Flood, Strategic Development Manager for Fermanagh Women’s Aid, says her agency met with senior police to discuss the move and how it would impact on those who avail of its service.

“Cuts have to be made and the only thing we can do is work smarter, better and offer advice to officers in dealing with victims of domestic abuse. That should be the responsibility of all officers, not just some of them,” she said, reiterating her belief that specialist officers will continue to cover the Fermanagh area. She explained that Women’s Aid has submitted a proposal to the Fermanagh Policing and Community Safety Partnership offering to give officers training on how to deal with domestic abuse cases. “We want local councillors to support us in our proposal,” said Ms. Flood.

Asked to comment on the latest shake up by police, Detective Chief Inspector David McBurney explained that the PSNI has established a new branch called ‘Public Protection Branch’ which is part of the Crime Operations Department.

“This new branch provides the PSNI response to victims and survivors of domestic violence and abuse, child abuse, including on line abuse and the viewing of child abuse images, vulnerable adults, rape and serious sexual assault and offender management.

“This development of a single specialist department is in line with police best practice across the UK. In order to work with partners, such as Social Services, which is at the core of keeping people safe, and to efficiently use resources, five teams have been established across Northern Ireland. These are co-terminus with the boundaries of the local health trusts.” Detective Chief Inspector McBurney explained: “These teams enable the PSNI to bring together specialist officers and increase our service delivery; for example having longer coverage in terms of shifts in the availability of domestic violence officers who are specifically trained to assist survivors and victims.

“These teams also work closely with local policing uniform colleagues who continue to provide a professional immediate response to anyone who calls the police. This joined up approach between specialist officers and local police helps us keep people safe,” he said.

The detective chief inspector says domestic abuse is a priority for the PSNI and explained that in this financial year there has been a 5.6 per cent increase in reporting of domestic abuse.

“We welcome this as it shows the increasing willingness of victims and survivors to seek our help; 13,426 crimes of this type were reported to PSNI in the same financial year.” “We continually seek to improve our support of the victims and survivors of domestic violence and abuse. In the last year, 3,200 front-line officers completed an online training package on responding to domestic abuse. All our student officers receive training on this subject which includes an input from Women’s Aid. I would repeat the commitment of the PSNI to supporting victims and survivors of all these crimes, especially domestic abuse and violence,” he said.

Yesterday (Wednesday) Ulster University published a study indicating that around one in 20 adults have experienced at least one form of partner violence and abuse within a three year period. Reports provided by the PSNI on domestic abuse also showed that the figure of 27,628 incidents for 2013/14 was the highest level recorded in Northern Ireland since 2004/05.

Commenting on the study, Ulster University psychologist Dr. Cherie Armour said: “It is vitally important that the way in which the PSNI responds to incidents of domestic violence is carefully monitored and reviewed. This is a really challenging role for any police force given the long lasting psychological, social and physical impacts on victims and their families.”