Tower Hamlets has 20 wards and each ward has a ward panel, which are the most important tool for public and police interaction on Ward management.

Tower Hamlets Police currently structure the borough into four clusters, which are colour-coded. Hence, when you visit our Safer Neighbourhoods Page, you see the wards coloured in relation to their cluster colour.

To improve and intensify local interaction with ward management, both

Tower Hamlets Police and Tower Hamlets Council, as well as other providers like housing and social support providers participate in those ward panel meetings, which should be held at least every 3-4 months.

Ward Panel Guidance notes preceded the handbook from 2018

Version 1 of the handbook 32 pages

Version 2 of the handbook 30 pages

is published in the Met Police’s FOI section

This handbook is marked as to be reviewed in 2023.

A very important addition in this v2 is on page 10, where CBV’s, Community Based Police Volunteers are included.

When we now search the Met Police website for Ward Panels we get no result. A FOI request to receive information about the latest version of the Ward Panel handbook has been submitted today, 2. August 2025. This is particularly important as a new Police and Crime Plan 2025 – 2029 has been published by MOPAC. See below.

Tower Hamlets Council has published a Ward Panel Action Plan in 2021.

Because this action plan is from 2021, from the previous Labour administration, we placed a query with the lead councillor Abu Chowdhury, which is to date dormant and has not been replied to.

However Superintendent Oliver Richter, Tower Hamlets Police has confirmed to me that he is planning to re-establish all ward panels early in 2026. Also important in this context is the forthcoming meeting on 17. December 2025 where Tower Hamlets Council decides on a definition for ASB in the borough.

Ward Panel structure

Management of Ward Panels

The Police and Crime Plan 2025 – 2029 – A safer London for Everyone – doesn’t mention the word Ward Panels once.

Ward Panels in Action

The Whitechapel Ward Ward Panel is run exemplary well and is very accessible with large meeting rooms. Anybody interested can attend, though only ward panel members, who reside, word or study in the ward have a vote to set policing priorities.

This is not the case with most other ward panels, some operate in a very obscure manner and are hardly or not at all visible.

I also feel that ward panel borders are not the beginning and end of a ward. What happens in neighbouring wards often considerably affects the crime and policing situation in another.

For example Whitechapel, Spitalfields and Banglatown and Weavers Wards are closely connected with businesses running through the wards like Whitechapel High Street and Brick Lane. Social provision and problem hotspots affect us all. The latest Clear – Hold – Build activity by Tower Hamlets Police in Whitechapel cleared Altab Ali park of criminal activity and homeless tents but problems are rife in Allen Gardens in the neighbouring Spitalfields and Banglatown, which borders Weavers Ward at the north end of Brick Lane.

Ward Panel meetings

Please visit our event calendar for ward panel meetings or visit our Safer Neighbourhood Page. if you click on the ward, that gets you through to the Tower Hamlets Police website, which also lists other engagement events happening in each ward.