Agenda and minutes

The minutes of the meeting held on 12 September 2013 were taken as read, confirmed and signed.

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There were no urgent items for consideration.

The Chairman invited members who wished to do so to declare any interest in respect of items on the agenda for the meeting.

All members of Community Safety Partnerships declared personal interests in all matters relating to those partnerships.

Mr Orson and Cllr Pendleton declared personal interests as members of the Strategic Partnership Board.

Col Martin declared a personal interest as a trustee of Warning Zone, which was in receipt of funding from the Police.

Cllr Sood declared a personal interest as the Chair of the Leicester Council of Faiths and a member of Sport England.

The Police and Crime Commissioner and Acting Chief Constable have been invited to attend for this item.

The Panel considered a report of the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner (OPCC) which set out the principal changes made to the Police and Crime Plan (the Plan) and introduced the refreshed Plan to be published by 25 October 2013.  A copy of the report is filed with these minutes.

The Chairman welcomed the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) and the Acting Chief Constable (ACC) to the meeting.

The PCC introduced the refreshed Plan and highlighted that it had been amended significantly from the draft received by the Panel at its meeting on 25 March, as a result of the Panel’s comments and feedback from wider public consultation.  In particular, the section on partnerships had been strengthened and improved to reflect the level of activity in that area which, through the Strategic Partnership Board, was now more clearly understood by the OPCC.

The PCC explained that the Plan included a number of targets which had been set in consultation with the Police to prioritise those issues identified as important by the public.  The Home Office was of the view that to reduce bureaucracy only one target would be necessary (i.e. to reduce crime in the area).  However, the PCC believed that this target only ‘skimmed the surface’ and did not reflect the complexity of crime and the wider issues related to crime which the Plan aimed to address and which needed to be measured. 

The ACC confirmed that he and colleagues had been engaged by the PCC in the development of the Plan and were satisfied that their views had been reflected and that it mirrored the length and breadth of work the force undertook.  In particular he was satisfied that the Plan recognised that the Police did not tackle crime alone, but worked very closely with partners and the public and that this would be increasingly important in the future, as pressure on resources increased.

The ACC confirmed that he recognised the dangers of relying too heavily on meeting targets and the priority for the Police would be to focus on outcomes.  However, he agreed that targets were needed in order to provide the necessary focus on those crimes identified as important by the public and to allow for performance to be measured throughout the year. 

The ACC outlined the financial challenges facing the force over the coming years; a funding gap of up to £19.9m had been identified to the end of 2016/17.  A Policing Plan was being produced to address this.  The priority for the force would be to continue to deliver on its duty to protect the public and keep people safe.  However, with funding being reduced at a time when costs were increasing, some radical and challenging changes would need to be undertaken in how this would be achieved.

The ACC explained some of the possible changes proposed for 2017 which included:

·         a smaller number for specialist officers and an increased number of generalist officers to ensure greater flexibility whilst also ensuring that specialist services could be targeted where needed;

·         a more centralised service with reduced numbers of police units/sections, therefore reducing risks arising from cross boundary issues;

·         greater emphasis on the forces commitment to local neighbourhood policing with less reliance on fixed police stations and more staff being located within community buildings;

·         greater use of technology, both by officers and as a means for reporting crimes and as a means to engage more effectively with communities;

·         cultural changes to reduce some levels of supervision; empowering officers to make more decisions themselves.

The following points rose from discussion:

      i.        The Panel welcomed the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 33.

A presentation will be delivered under this item.

The Panel considered a verbal report from Paul Stock of the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner, the purpose of which had been to provide an update on Stage 2 Transfers which related to the transfer of staff and assets from the Police Authority to the Police and Crime Commissioner and the Chief Constable in line with the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011.

The Panel noted that proposals for the transfer of staff had been submitted to the Home Secretary for approval and that when comments had been received, a further report would be brought back to the Board in December.

RESOLVED:

That the update now provided be noted.

The next meeting of the Police and Crime Panel has yet to be scheduled.

RESOLVED:

It was noted that the next meeting of the Panel would be held on Friday 13 December 2013 at 2.00pm.