Agenda item

The Panel questioned the Commissioner on his decision to take Blaby District Council to a Judicial Review in regard to a new development in the district at its previous meeting on 9 June.

 

For reference, a copy of the Panel’s decision on the matter is attached to the agenda.

 

A copy of the PCC’s response is attached and the PCC will deliver a statement at the meeting in support of his report.

 

The Panel considered a report and statement of the PCC in respect of his response to the Panel’s recommendations at the previous Panel meeting in June 2014 in regard to the damaged relations between partners as a result of the action taken by the PCC to take Blaby District Council to a Judicial Review over the timing of Section 106 contribution payments for the proposed “New Lubbesthorpe” development. A copy of the report, marked “Agenda Item 4” is filed with these minutes.

 

In introducing the item, the PCC delivered the following statement:

 

“Mr Chairman, Panel members. At the last meeting of this panel you asked me to report to you, at our next meeting, on the measures being taken by me and my office to develop and nurture good working relationships with our partners. I fully agree the inference that we now look to the future to identify how we can develop working practices that will enhance our relationship with local authority partners.

Firstly, I would hope that anyone reading the Police and Crime Plan would see the importance that I already place upon Partnership working; the efficacy of those relationships is fundamental to the delivery of the Plan. Together, we have a statutory responsibility for the safety of our communities and I am also sure that we would all agree that nothing is more important than that duty.

So, what steps am I taking?

Since the last Panel meeting, the Chief Constable and I have met with the Leader, Chief Executive and Planners from 3 councils (Blaby, Hinckley & Bosworth, and Oadby & Wigston), and we have arranged similar meetings with representatives from the remaining councils; visits to Charnwood, North-West Leicestershire and Rutland are already in the diary whilst we are still refining dates with Melton, Harborough and the City. The aim of these meetings is to see how we can work more effectively in the future. I remain committed to the protection of policing services in the community – a commitment that I know is shared by us all – and I felt that these meetings would help us all to move forward and plan for the future with a shared understanding of just what is required and how that can be delivered.

 

Equally, I felt it would be helpful to discuss the community safety issues facing Leicestershire Police with the representatives from the Community Safety Partnerships. These partnerships, comprising representatives from a wide range of agencies, are critical to our – and I do mean ‘our’ – endeavours to reduce low level criminality, acquisitive crime and anti-social behaviour. I have therefore pledged to meet the Chair from every Community Safety Partnership within our area, to explain our situation in further detail, and to seek their help in finding a resolution that meets the needs of all parties. These meetings are being set up by my Office now but, somewhat inevitably, the summer holiday period is adding an extra complication.

Specifically regarding Lubbesthorpe, we clearly need to make plans for policing of the new development. While I would like to stress that there is no appetite for further dispute on the issue, we do need to find a workable solution – and we need to find that together.

Accordingly, I have asked my Chief Executive Paul Stock and the Force’s Director of Finance Paul Dawkins to meet with the relevant executives at Blaby District Council at the earliest opportunity to seek a positive way forward. The seniority of these two executives is indicative of our commitment to repairing any damage to our relationship with Blaby District Council and I have every confidence that an acceptable conclusion can be reached. Let me stress that the meeting that the Chief and I had with Cllr Ernie White, the CEO Sandra Whiles, and the planner Rob Back, was highly productive in setting the conditions for a much more constructive engagement at the ‘working level’.

In isolation, however, I appreciate this is unlikely to be enough, so I have asked for a chief officer from the Force – and Chief Supt Sally Healey will be our representative on the Lubbesthorpe Strategic Board. We are grateful for the invitation to this pivotal body and we are pleased to accept the opportunities that such liaison offers.

In addition, and subject to invitation, the Force’s Director of Finance Paul Dawkins will attend meetings of the ‘HPIG’ (Housing Planning Infrastructure Group) to ensure that our voice is heard at an early stage. This Group is chaired by the Chief Executive of NW Leicestershire District Council, Christine Fisher.

Also, and as I’m sure you know, there is a county-wide Chief Executive’s Forum. These regular meetings, between peers from all responsible authorities, must be (or, if they are not, must become) a key strategic driver of the partnership work-steams necessary over the coming years to provide our residents with the quality of services they expect and deserve. My Chief Executive, who already sits on this forum, will seek mutual agreement on the distinct areas of work necessary to achieve this. He will of course report progress to me – and I to you.

You will also be aware of the forthcoming additions to my responsibilities vis-à-vis the services provided to victims and witnesses. I wish, and have emphasised my determination, to engage fully with our partners in the development of our plans here. We have adopted an approach of every day conversations with key partners and stakeholders, so this will become very much a part of the office culture – effectively, ‘business as usual’. This is essential to the success of the transition to the new arrangements and subsequent embedding of the services commissioned.

Moving on, my Commissioning Framework already deeply reflects the significant priority I place on working effectively with partners to secure effective outcomes. Recently, I have issued the updated Framework for consultation on commissioning of services in FYs 15/16 and 16/17. Members of the panel, and key partners and stakeholders, will have received an invitation to contribute to the consultation and I welcome comments and contributions to the proposals within the Framework. I hereby give my commitment that all will be considered fully.

My commitment to daily working with all partners, including wider engagement with them on key priorities (eg Mental Health) remains steadfast. For the same reason, I sit on and hopefully contribute to the likes of the Leicestershire Safer Communities Strategy Board. By working together with partners, we can indeed make a difference and both my team and I are well aware of the significance of these work-strands. We are all, I think, seeking to build on and enhance current relationships.

Mr Chairman, I will now turn to new initiatives and approaches from my office that will also contribute to this endeavour.

Firstly, at the recent meeting of the Strategic Partnership Board (on which representatives from all our statutory partners sit) it was agreed that a fundamental review was needed. This review has now been commissioned and it will include the supporting groups as well as the under-pinning Executive Board. I feel we need jointly to define its core purpose and the appropriateness of the associated administrative support. It is now over 18 months since I took office and it is timely to consider whether the original raison d’être remains cogent and relevant.

Secondly, the Chief Constable and I will host a Partnership Summit in early October, to shape the joint creation of a shared Crime Reduction Strategy. We are acutely aware of the need to consult, listen and act upon partners’ views and their potential to make a valuable contribution to ensure the optimum outcome for local residents.

Thirdly, as you are aware, overall responsibility for the Force’s Infrastructure Growth and Design is delegated to the Chief Constable. However, following a review of my Office conducted by the Chief Executive, we are planning to enhance the support given to my Chief Finance Officer in order to align better the activities of Force resource planning with the strategic planning activity within my Office.

Fourthly, I have considered the importance of media and communications in some depth. I have instructed the relevant officers from my office and the force to develop a policy and/or protocol with peers in partner organisations. The aim is to share information on matters that have a significant impact on the image and reputation of Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland and to promote an understanding of our shared vision on the likes of crime prevention, crime reduction and community reassurance. I should stress immediately that I am not seeking to place restrictions on freedom of expression but, rather, to create opportunities to promote joint working for the benefit of the public we all serve.

Another paper on this agenda will provide you with information on the review of communications and the latest developments, so I will not go into that here, but suffice to say that I think the changes I seek to make will improve our relationship with partners and our overall service delivery.

Finally, I have considered the structure of my team and its capacity to devote sufficient time and expertise to partnership working. As a result, I have created a new post dedicated to partnership support. The role of this key individual will be to boost our ability to react to, and meet demand from, partnership issues. I believe that this will prove hugely beneficial in our future working relationships, and I plan to have the individual in post as soon as possible.

To complement my own activities, I am now considering the appointment of policy advisors. If I decide to proceed, these posts would be on a part-time basis and they may well be political appointments (or to be fair, they may not, I haven’t quite decided yet). The intention, Mr Chairman, is to bring on board people experienced in specific areas of critical policy work, who have the capacity to focus their attention on those key areas. As a minimum requirement, my current thinking is to have a Policy Advisor with a focus on Community Safety and Policing and, with the changes as a result of Transforming Rehabilitation and the Victims agenda looming, a Policy Advisor for Criminal Justice priorities. I am currently working up a firm proposal on this, with a view to implementing a Special Advisory Panel to support and work with me on developing future policy, advising on the impact of proposals and subsequent implementation. Any changes to structure from suggestions within this report would be met from within existing OPCC budgets and would not increase the cost of the office.

I hope, Mr Chairman, that you would agree that in just a few short weeks a great deal has been achieved. These, and previous actions, indicate my commitment and unswerving desire to foster efficient and effective relationships with partners – we are all here to serve the public and we all owe this to the people who put their trust in us. It is the people who gave us the privilege of doing the job we do and I will do everything in my power to deliver on my pledges to them.

For the moment, that is as much as I can say. And, whilst I am happy to take questions, you will appreciate that there will be some aspects that simply have not yet been fully designed or implemented; it really is work in progress. My intention is to drive a continuing programme of improvement, and I think you may find it more meaningful if we were to review progress in, say, a year’s time. For the moment, though, you can see my ambition in taking all of these issues most seriously.

Thank you.”

 

Arising from the PCC’s statement, the following points were noted:

 

·           The PCC agreed that an adequate risk assessment as part of the action taken to go to a Judicial Review should have been completed. He further acknowledged that any decisions taken by the PCC or his office from this point forward would be better risk assessed;

·           A new partnership post that was being created in the OPCC was currently being scoped. It would be a senior officer post and it was likely that the post would be externally advertised. The PCC was keen that the post would have sufficient seniority to enable the post holder to make decisions at partnership board level;

·           It was intended to bring a report to the Panel in September on the structure of the PCC’s office;

·           To ensure effective partnership working, it was important that representatives of appropriate seniority and, where possible, delegated authority attended partnership meetings;

·           The importance of aligning strategic priorities was emphasised;

·           A group of political posts would be devised to form a “contact group” to assist the PCC and his office in effective decision making. The posts were unlikely to be remunerated beyond expenses.

RESOLVED:

 

(a)       That the PCC be thanked for his statement and that the work being undertaken to improve partnership working be welcomed;

(b)       That the progress made in moving partnership working forward be reported to the Panel’s meeting on 29 September;

(c)       That a report on the structure and cost of the OPCC be submitted to one of the Panel’s remaining meetings in 2014.