City sharpens up safety with £33,000 on stab-proof vests

THE city council has spent more than £33,000 kitting out its staff with stab-proof vests when they patrol streets or tackle antisocial behaviour, it emerged today.

Dozens of the vests, which cost up to £380, have been purchased over the past three years, in a move today described as "unfortunate but necessary".

The figures, released to the Evening News under the Freedom of Information Act, show that a large portion of the protective gear is handed to environmental wardens who issue on-the-spot fines for litter or dog fouling.

Trading standards officers, who probe illegal activity such as counterfeiting, and workers who deal with complaints about domestic noise are also equipped with the vests when they leave their office.

Councillor Paul Edie, the city's community safety leader, said today: "The safety of our staff is paramount, which is why the council invests in suitable protective clothing, such as stab-proof vests, for officers whose roles can put them at risk.

"Enforcement staff are often required to deal with potentially threatening situations, so we need to ensure that each situation is risk assessed and officers are kitted out with appropriate protective clothing."

A total of 106 vests have been purchased by the council since 2005.

Other examples of staff who receive the protective gear include licensing standards officers, who turn up unannounced to inspect pubs, and HMO (houses of multiple occupancy) officers, who respond to complaints about over-crowding in flats.

Environmental wardens, who now sometimes patrol the streets with police officers to crack down on crime, antisocial behaviour and littering, wear the vests at all times. Other staff use the gear on a risk-assessed basis.

Tory group leader Iain Whyte said today: "There will be occasions when this is a necessity, which is very unfortunate – and I wish it wasn't the case – but the council has to protect its staff.

"We know the police have worn this type of protective gear for some time. Hopefully, it is only used by council workers when necessary, but it's better to be protected."

The growing fear of knife crime is forcing more public sector bodies to supply body armour to frontline workers, including accident and emergency staff, teachers and traffic wardens.

Last month, the Body Armour Company said it had received about 10,000 orders for protective vests from councils or hospital trusts.

The city council's head of human resources, Philip Barr, said today: "This protective gear was not purchased in response to any actual stabbing or specific incident. None of the individuals employed within the groups has been the victim of a stabbing whilst in work."

It emerged last month that the number of people in Edinburgh convicted of carrying a knife in public has soared by almost 70 per cent in the past five years.