Over 50 delegates from the Police, community safety organisations, tourism businesses and local authorities attended a Crimestoppers in Kent conference in the Maiden’s Tower in July.
The launch was part of the Crimestoppers charity’s continued efforts to help make our communities safer by encouraging more people to speak up and report crime anonymously via Crimestoppers, and to highlight combined crime prevention efforts throughout the summer.
Throughout history Leeds Castle has been a private meeting place for significant talks affecting the safety and security of our country. During the Second World War Churchill visited Leeds Castle to meet with Geoffrey Lloyd, Minister for Petroleum to discuss secret plans for Operation Pluto; a project which saw petroleum pumped under the Channel to the Allies in France supporting those fighting for our freedom. Initial talks between foreign ministers for Egypt, Israel and the United States of America took place here in 1978 which later led to the Camp David agreement. And in 2004 the Northern Ireland peace talks took place chaired by Tony Blair and Sinn Fein.
Today we continue to welcome corporate clients to meetings and conferences here at Leeds Castle and the Crimestoppers Conference is our third crime prevention themed conference in the past year following the Historic England Heritage Metal Theft Workshop in November 2016 and the launch of Heritage Watch this February.
Pictured L-R: George Jessel, High Sheriff of Kent; Peter Rolington, Chairman, Crimestoppers in Kent; Matthew Scott, Kent Police & Crime Commissioner; Mark Hallas, CEO, Crimestoppers UK; Alan Pughsley, Chief Constable, Kent Police.