To consider the Draft Police and Crime Commissioner’s Annual Report 2013 / 14 in accordance with the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011.
Minutes:
The Commissioner formally presented his Draft Annual Report 2013/2014 to the Panel for their consideration in accordance with the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011.
The report provided a high level overview of the Commissioner's work over the 2013/2014 period.
In discussion the following points were raised:
• Tom Windsor, HM Chief Inspector of Constabulary had written to all Police and Crime Panels seeking their views on his consultation document on the annual PEEL inspection of Forces. It was proposed that Helen Barker chair a task and finish group to respond to the consultation with a copy of the draft response circulated to the Panel prior to its despatch.
• Concerns were expressed about the potential closure of police stations, especially ones in rural locations (e.g Ludlow) and the consequential policing coverage and service delivery in such large geographical areas. The Chief Constable advised the Panel that Ludlow was specifically being kept open and was currently the base for some parts of South Shropshire. Assurance was given that a full consultation would be undertaken when making decisions about the future of police stations. The Chief Constable stated that whilst there were fewer police bases, the response to emergency calls was getting better and visibility was increasing within communities.
• Responding to a comment about the police cadet initiative, the Commissioner stated that he had been pleased with the success of the scheme and was proud of it. The Panel was advised that there were 28 police cadet places in each policing area, and it was expected that there would be 140 police cadets in the next 12 months.
• It was commented that whilst there had been a level of scepticism about the new policing model, its implementation had been better than expected. However one concern was the lack of manning of front-desks, for example in the new facility in Bromsgrove and it was requested that this service be re-introduced. It was stated that the public was frustrated by the inaccessibility of a police station when police staff were on site. In response the Commissioner stated that keeping front desks open was not always justified, but that discussions were on-going with the Chief Constable on the matter. The Chief Constable added that a balance needed to be reached between provision of service and keeping policing both local and visible. Contact points (e.g telephone, video link) were being made available as were consideration of alternative models (such as in Malvern), but that hard choices needed to be made about brigading staff. It was suggested that consideration be given to investigating alternative models, that could include using local government personnel, libraries, hubs etc to assist the public with signposting policing matters appropriately.
• What were the implications of the significant local government reductions in the area of trading standards? The Commissioner expressed concerns about the reductions in the trading standards area, not least as trading standards had an important role in law enforcement e.g illegal imports etc. He stated that he was keen to hold meetings with trading standards representatives in order to fully appreciate the consequences of the budget reductions in an important area. The Chief Constable added that the police and trading standards needed to use their combined enforcement capability and often dealt with the same people. The trading standards budget reductions could potentially have an impact.
• What implications, if any, were there on road safety as a result of local government reducing the use of street lighting? The Chief Constable stated that fatalities on the road continued to fall however the following groups continued to be areas of concern: school age children, motorcyclists and young drivers. It was important that this reduction continued to be delivered through a range of enforcement, education and engineering work. The impact of the reduction of street lighting was not known, but information would be sought on the issue.
• Whilst appreciating that the matter remained subject to legal proceedings; the Commissioner was asked to inform the Panel of the processes of holding the Chief Constable to account in respect of the case relating to the incident involving the police and Andrew Mitchell MP in Downing Street and the Chief Constable's subsequent involvement in the investigation. The Commissioner stated that the case did cause West Mercia Force concern. In relation the Chief Constable's involvement, the Commissioner stated that he was briefed at the time of the Chief Constable's involvement though much of the information at that point in time was not known; the issues then escalated. The Commissioner stated that he consciously took the view that he would form a judgement when all the facts were known. This, he believed, was the right stance to take. He was confident in the actions that he had taken and the systems he had in place had helped to hold the Chief Constable to account. The systems the Commissioner had in place included a weekly meeting with the Chief Constable. A comprehensive record of the discussion was maintained and a sanitised version made publicly available on the website. To date over 300 topic areas had been discussed.
• Assurance was requested and given in respect of the systems in place to deal with complaints which the Commissioner considered to be open and transparent. The Panel was advised that the Chief Constable reported on all serious misconduct issues and that it was the Commissioner’s prerogative to sit on and attend the relevant complaints body. The Commissioner advised the Panel of the establishment of a joint Trust, Ethics and Integrity Committee, with the Warwickshire Commissioner. A programme of dip sampling was also in place.
• An update was requested on the community speed watch schemes and the Panel was advised that there was the capacity to run 30 schemes in parallel across the West Mercia area and that pilots were to be completed in Herefordshire and Shropshire during September and October.
• What was the budget allocation for the police federation? The Chief Constable advised the Panel that West Mercia supported the employment of 2 FTE and made a small contribution to national funded posts. A meeting with the Police Federation was to take place imminently and the Panel would receive more detailed information on this matter.
• Had there been any increase in the number of appropriate interview suites available for victims of domestic abuse, children and vulnerable witnesses? The Chief Constable advised the Panel that he was not aware of pressures in this area and gave assurance that any concerns in this area were picked up quickly as a matter of course. The provision of SARP within Worcestershire and Telford had been successful and provided effective support.
The Chairman thanked the Commissioner and his staff for the comprehensive report. The Panel was advised that the Chairman had sought a meeting with Chairman of Warwickshire Police and Crime Panel and Warwickshire’s Commissioner, Chief Constable and the Commissioner’s Chief Executive. To date this meeting had not taken place and the Chairman proposed a formal resolution seeking a formal commitment from the Chairman of the Warwickshire Police and Crime Panel to such a meeting.
RESOLVED that the Panel:
(a) welcomed the report of the West Mercia Police and Crime Commissioner and the responses provided to questions.
(b) agreed for the Chairman of the Panel to write to the Chairman of the Warwickshire Police and Crime Panel seek formal commitment to a meeting between the Panel Chairmen, Commissioners, Chief Constables and the Commissioners Chief Executives for both West Mercia and Warwickshire areas.