Commissioner's report

Report: 5
Date: 28 May 2009
By: Commissioner

Summary

This report, prepared for the Full Authority meeting, summarises the progress of the Metropolitan Police Service against the objectives featured in the 2008 – 2011 Policing Plan for London.

The narrative in the report covers the periods March and April 2009 with data for individual measures reflecting the full financial year ended 31 March 2009 unless stated otherwise. It is intended to highlight progress against corporate targets and identifies key operational activities that deliver a safer city for all London’s communities.

This report contains the usual monthly figures relating to the Critical Performance Areas. Report headlines can be summarised as follows:

• Crime in London has continued to fall with over 18,600 fewer crimes in 2008/09 compared to last year, a 2.2% reduction to the lowest level in ten financial years. Positive achievements include reducing assault, gun crime, knife crime, robbery and burglary. Challenges include rises in business crime, recorded rape and hate crime.
• We have also continued to improve our overall sanction detection rate to 26.2%, doubling our performance in the last 5 years. Sanction detection rates improved for homicide, gun crime, knife crime and hate crime. Sanction detection rates decreased for residential burglary and business crime.
• The residential burglary rate shows a reduction of 1.1% (686 fewer offences) for 2008/09 compared with 2007/08. While this does represent a historical low, we recognise that this may prove challenging to sustain in the longer term.
• There were 2,209 fewer youth (under 20 years old) victims of crime in 2008/09 than in 2007/08. The number of youth homicide victims (aged 10-19) is down to 23 from 29 compared to 2007/08.
• Rape offences have increased by 14.5%, 276 offences, in 2008/09 compared with 2007/08. However the sanction detection rate for rape has increased marginally to 33.6%. Domestic violence offences have also increased by 4.4% over the same period.
• The MPS workforce increased to 51,879 employees at the end of April while the overall police officer numbers at 32,766 are the highest level ever recorded.

A. Recommendation

Members are requested to note the contents of the report.

B. Supporting information

1. This report provides updates on year-end performance against the corporate objectives featured in the Policing Plan for London. For each objective we summarise progress and report on key initiatives. For ease of reference a summary table giving an overview of performance is attached at Appendix 1 with a green (G), amber (A), red (R) assessment against the Critical Performance Areas (CPAs) under each objective.

Our Delivery: performance and activity

Objective: Make our services more accessible and improve people’s experience of their contact with us, especially victims and witnesses.

How we monitor our performance

2. We monitor our progress against this objective via two Critical Performance Areas measures (see below). Both measures are statutory performance indicators (SPI) derived from a comprehensive survey of service users conducted by an independent market research company. The survey takes place on a continuous basis and captures recent experiences of victims of burglary, violent crime, vehicle crime, road traffic collisions and racist incidents.

Progress summary

• Year end results show that victim satisfaction with our overall service has improved by 0.8% points on 2007/08 to 77.7% but is below our target of 78.9%.
• The satisfaction gap between white and BME victims was 4.7% points similar to that for 2007/08 [4.8%]. This gap is close to the national average and the focus of ongoing research by the Home Office, NPIA and MPS to gain a greater understanding of the key drivers of satisfaction amongst different user groups. The MPS is implementing a number of initiatives to address victim satisfaction and the satisfaction gap.

Recent initiatives

3. As part of the MPS Policing Pledge, CO 16 Traffic Criminal Justice aims to make contact with those involved in a road traffic collision within 10 working days of the incident providing details of the person dealing with their case. Since December 2008 the average time taken from the date of the incident to the date of contact has reduced from 8 working days to 5 working days. Compliance with the 10 working day target currently stands at 90%.

Objective: Make our neighbourhoods safer through local and city-wide problem solving and partnership working to reduce crime, anti-social behaviour and road casualties

How we monitor our performance

4. The primary measure for this objective is public confidence through a statutory performance indicator measured independently via the Home Office’s British Crime Survey (BCS) (glossary of terms is attached at Appendix 2). The BCS is a long established continuous survey of UK residents conducted face-to-face in people’s homes. The limitations are that respondents are aged 17 and above and it does not capture business crime.

5. In addition to public confidence, progress is monitored using Home Office Statutory Performance Indicators (SPIs) focused on the underlying serious acquisitive crime rate and our associated investigation performance – namely the number of offenders brought to justice. Additionally, to assess the safety of our roads network across the capital, the MPS use a very specific SPI - a count of the number of people killed or seriously injured in road traffic collisions relative to the number of vehicle kilometres travelled. This measure enables the Home Office to compare and contrast performance across forces with different traffic densities.

Progress summary

• The latest results show confidence in local policing now stands at 54.8% [year to Dec 2008] below the year-end target of 56.2%. The MPS leads its Home Office Most Similar Family (MSF) group and is 15th out of the 42 police force areas in England and Wales. The result for the full year to March 2009 is not expected to become available until July. Considerable effort is being applied to improve this performance and a detailed update is to be provided to the Strategic and Operational Policing Committee on 8 June.
• Serious acquisitive crime has been on a long term improving trend, falling 7.7% last year compared to 2007/08, to its lowest level in any rolling 12 month period since the year to March 1999. We exceeded our target of a 4% year-on-year reduction.
• Our sanction detection rate for serious acquisitive crime fell marginally to 10.4%, missing our targeted improvement to 11.8%. The MPS signalled previously that the improvement target had become challenging. The MPS has applied significant resources to tackling violence-related offences rather than to improving sanction detection rates for serious acquisitive crime.

Recent initiatives

Operation Spotlight

 6. Residential burglary shows a reduction of 1.1% (686 fewer offences) for the 12 months to March 2009 compared with the previous rolling 12 months. At the end of March 2009 the MPS sanction detection rate for residential burglary was 13%.

7. We anticipate that burglary will continue to be a challenging area. Very early indications from the first weeks of April have shown a rise over the corresponding period last year. Whilst it is still too early to make meaningful comparisons this trend will be closely monitored.

8. To coincide with the start of the new performance year, a new operational phase is taking place to identify opportunities to sustain burglary reduction in 2009/10. All boroughs have been required to submit their 2009/10 burglary plans with analysis and funding.

Objective: Reduce serious violence and protect young people

How we monitor our performance

9. Performance is monitored against this objective using a combination of Home Office SPIs and internal MPS metrics. The SPIs also feature within the national Assessment of Policing and Community Safety framework (APACS) introduced in April 2008.

Progress Summary

10. The MPS met its targets against all the serious crime reduction measures:

• Most Serious Violence and Assault With Injury reduced by 2.4% (-1,761 offences) in this baseline year compared to 2007/08.
• Against the new Home Office gun crime definition, we have seen a year-on-year reduction of 25.8% (-753 offences) exceeding our target of a 3% reduction. This has been achieved through a series of proactive initiatives including intelligence-led interventions at identified hot spots.
• The combined sanction detection rate for most serious violence and serious sexual offences was 32.3% in this baseline year 2008/09.
• Arrests resulted from 72.9% of Domestic Violence offences in 2008/09, which exceeded our target for the year of 67%.
• The number of under 20 year olds becoming victims of violence decreased by 9.8% (2,209 victims) compared to 2007/08. This exceeded the year-end target of a 6% reduction.

Recent Initiatives

Operation Blunt 2

11. Knife crime showed a 13.3% reduction in 2008/09 compared with 2007/08. This equates to 1,882 fewer violent crimes involving knives.

12. Recently, Operation Hawk (within Operation Blunt 2) has been launched to deliver enforcement activity against those involved with street-level violence, including identified gangs. Co-ordinated searches across 11 boroughs on 29 April resulted in the arrest of 75 people for a range of violence and weapon related crime. This included arrests for violent disorder, possession of firearms and Class A controlled drugs. The activity impacted some eight identified street gangs and more than 25 individuals who are involved with those gangs have been arrested. Residents in areas affected by police activity were informed by Safer Neighbourhood Teams as to the purpose of the operation with the use of leaflets.

13. This operation is designed to build further capability for regular and sustained enforcement against street level gangs. The prosecutions from this activity are being tracked together with the impact on recorded offences of violence in the relevant boroughs.

Disrupting motorcycle gangs in smash and grab offences

14. Since September 2008 there has been a significant increase in the number of smash and grab type burglary/ robbery offences taking place primarily in the West End district of London. These offences typically involve the theft of high value designer goods and represent a degree of organisation and planning.

15. On 24 April Diplomatic Patrol Group officers were involved in the arrest of smash and grab robbers at the Carlton Tower Hotel. A DPG carrier van responded to information given by a taxi driver and arrived at the hotel as men on motorcycles were leaving the scene. DPG units working with local officers detained the four suspects and stolen property was recovered.

16. The re-occurance of such crimes is having a huge financial impact on the retail industry and the losses are running into millions of pounds. A partnership approach is being adopted and liaison is taking place with major retail outlets to address this ongoing systematic problem..

Objective: Disrupt more criminal networks and reduce the harm caused by drugs

How we monitor our performance

17. In the absence of nationally defined SPIs, we monitor our performance using a combination of internal measures.

Progress summary

• Good progress is being made in disrupting criminal networks – achieving over 30 disruptions each month through the deployment of proactive teams acting on intelligence.
• The value of assets identified by court order for seizure during 2008/09 was £52.0m [an average of £4.3m per month] exceeding the year end target of £42m.
• We narrowly missed our target of improving the number of sanction detections for the trafficking of Class A drugs, achieving 2,516 sanction detections in 2008/09 compared to 2,525 in 2007/08.
• Compared to 2007/08 there has been an improvement in sanction detections for cocaine and heroin individually (1,636 and 697 respectively).

Recent initiatives

18. CO 14 Clubs and Vice has recently mounted Operation Cardamom, a covert intelligence led operation targeting the supply of Class A drugs in nightclubs within the MPS. On 1 April, officers arrested the key suspect during a pre- planned operation and found a quantity of drugs believed to be cocaine and ecstasy in the suspect’s address. The suspect was charged with six counts of supplying Class A drugs, has pleaded guilty and is in custody awaiting sentencing.

Police Central e-Crime Unit

19. On 8 April, the new Police Central e-crime Unit (PCeU) completed its first pro-active operational work. For the first time, the PCeU worked as part of a new Virtual Task Force in an innovative approach to tackling e-crime. Over 50 officers from the PCeU, local boroughs and Specialist Crime Directorate targeted several addresses in south-east London to arrest a European organised team who have been targeting the financial service industry. Nine people were arrested on suspicion of money laundering, computer misuse and conspiracy to de-fraud.

Objective: Enhance our counter terrorism capability and capacity

How we monitor our performance

20. The MPS continues to report its performance in relation to counter-terrorism to the MPA/MPS Counter Terrorism Protective Services Sub-committee, chaired by Lord Toby Harris. The next meeting of this group is on 28 May 2009. Internally reports are also regularly provided to MPS Performance Board.

Progress summary

21. On 8 April 2009 John Yates was appointed Assistant Commissioner Specialist Operations, with the London and national lead for counter terrorism policing.

22. Terrorism remains a significant threat to the United Kingdom. The current threat level is assessed as Severe (as of 4 July 2007). To address this, significant capacity has been developed within the MPS to deliver the Government counter-terrorism strategy, which was itself revised with the public release of CONTEST 2 on 24 March.

Prevent

23. The MPS Prevent implementation plan and guidance was launched on 24 March to support BOCUs. Development of counter terrorism local borough profiles to brief local CEOs and other senior representatives will assist understanding of communities or individuals vulnerable to recruitment by violent extremists.

24. CT grant money has been secured to build capacity and capability around the Prevent network on boroughs, in particular the establishment of Prevent Engagement Officers who will be the public facing aspect of Prevent activity on boroughs. Across London three geographically-based teams led by Chief Inspectors will support these Engagement officers.

25. Recruitment of six ‘Channel’ coordinators will oversee partnership referrals to help identify individuals considered vulnerable to recruitment by violent extremists and will support boroughs that do not have capacity or capability to manage referrals locally.

Protect – ‘Airport Watch’ at Heathrow

26. SO 18 (Airports) held its first Aviation Enthusiast Conference in April, part of a joint initiative by the MPS, BAA and plane enthusiasts to enlist planespotters as extra ‘eyes and ears’ on the ground around the airport. The Safer Airports Team gave well received presentations to over 100 registered attendees.

Recent Operations and Trials

27. Operation PATHWAY was a joint operation involving close cooperation between the MPS, GMP, West Midlands and Merseyside Police, and the British Security Services. The GMP took the operational lead in a number of arrests made on 8 April. In subsequent weeks, the MPS has supported GMP with a substantial number of officers notably in the specialist areas of viewing and forensic requirements. This support will remain in place while investigations continue.

28. On 29 April three men on trial at Kingston Crown Court were found not guilty of conspiracy to cause explosions in connection with the ‘7/7’ bomb attacks in London in 2005. Two of them were however found guilty of knowingly attending terrorist training and received sentences of seven years imprisonment each.

29. The MPS must place public safety as their first priority. This responsibility creates significant challenges in managing public expectation where intelligence, rather than existing evidence, drives a requirement for operational activity. There will continue to be operations where action must be taken at an early stage, ahead of any known evidential opportunity and therefore with the clear risk that no evidence may be discovered. The impact on public perception in respect of this activity will continue to be monitored and carefully considered.

Section 44 Review

30. Following a review of the MPS use of stop and search powers under Section 44 of the Terrorism Act 2000 (TACT) a new model refining its use will be rolled out in May for a three month pilot in four boroughs: Southwark, Brent, Newham and Tower Hamlets. It is anticipated this will reduce the overall numbers of s44 stops while giving a closer protective focus on key areas and events. Guidance has been issued in respect of powers, which all officers are required to adhere to.

Counter Terrorism Advertising Campaign

31. The Anti-Terrorist Hotline is a national resource and offers an easy and confidential means for the public to communicate relevant information to the police. The Hotline has recently been the subject of the publicity campaign ‘If you suspect it, report it’, launched on 15 March by the ACPO Terrorism and Allied Matters Business Group, together with the MPS. The five weeks of the campaign (March/April 2009) has recorded a 200% increase in the amount of intelligence received from the public in comparison to the five weeks before.

Objective: Plan for, and effectively police, major events in London and prepare for the 2012 Olympics

How we monitor our performance

32. There are no SPIs for this corporate objective, which in itself is linked to the wider milestones for delivering the national Olympic Security Programme that goes beyond policing and are the responsibility of the Home Secretary. The Olympic Security Directorate reports on progress for this planning to the Director of Olympic Safety and Security in the Home Office. The MPA maintain oversight of the MPS involvement.

Progress summary

33. There are four critical performance areas against which progress against the delivery programme is being measured.

• Meeting the Demand: strategic options for delivering the gap: The paper of costed options of how the identified gap between supply and demand will be met, is incorporated within the CSS draft delivered in October 2008 (see below). Draft completed.
• Beijing Security Learning: LOCOG (London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games) official debriefs: OSD Beijing debrief is complete, LOCOG final debrief is available subject to information sharing agreement.
• OGC Gateway 0 - Programme Strategic Assessment: OGC (Office of Government Commerce) review of the Home Office Programme has moved from Red to Amber-Red. Recommendations have been addressed.
• Costed Security Strategy (CSS) delivery: The strategy was approved by Ministers on 25 February 2009, with a written ministerial statement released on 26 February 2009. An update from ministers will be available in mid-summer. 

Our Organisation: managing the business

Our People

334. At the end of April 2009 the MPS workforce increased to 51,879 employees. The number of regular police officers has increased to 32,766, whilst the number of special constables continues to grow and stands at 2,613 officers in line with the deployment plan. The number of Police Community Support Officers (PCSO) has increased to 4,627, impacting positively upon community relations.

35. Under Positive Action, the MPS Careers Team has developed a range of support interventions to assist BME applicants to perform to their full potential in the national selection process. Additionally, a Community Engagement Strategy has been developed which works with some of the communities that have been highlighted as a recruitment priority. These include the Somali, Bangladeshi, Pakistani and Turkish communities of London.

Our other resources

36. The 2009/12 Policing London Business Plan that was approved in March is now available on the MPA and MPS websites and the summary is being finalised for publication in May.

37. Police officers and staff are now able to gain secure access to MPS AWARE applications when on the move following the introduction of Blackberry Email on the Move. Directorate of Information has enabled the purchase of this facility to local units across the MPS. Borough commanders and other senior officers have already indicated the benefit of more efficient mobile working and communication.

C. Legal implications

1. There are no direct legal implications arising from this performance monitoring report.

2. The MPA is required to monitor compliance of the MPS’s performance in accordance with s6ZB of the Police Act 1996 as inserted by the paragraph 8, Schedule 2 of the Police and Justice Act 2006 and The Police Authorities (Particular Functions & Transitional provisions) Order 2008.

D. Race and equality impact

There are key areas of specific activity in relation to equalities that demonstrate our commitment to diversity and are essential to the success of the MPS. These include improving the quality of service provided to victims of hate crime, ensuring that a consistent and effective service is provided to London’s diverse communities; improving performance against domestic violence, ensuring a consistent level of service across all communities and minimising disproportionality issues; increasing community trust and confidence in the police use of stop and search ensuring it is used fairly and proportionately; continuing to develop a workforce that reflects the diversity of London and improving the progression of women within the police service.

E. Financial implications

There are no financial implications arising directly from this report.

F. Background papers

None

G. Contact details

Report author(s): Michael Debens, Director of Business Strategy, MPS

For more information contact:

MPA general: 020 7202 0202
Media enquiries: 020 7202 0217/18

Appendix 2

 Glossary of terms

APACS

Assessment of Policing and Community Safety – performance management framework which will provide the Home Office and its partners with the capability to monitor and assess performance in policing and community safety

BCS

British Crime Survey – a long established Home Office managed survey designed to capture levels of crime and public attitudes to crime as well as other criminal justice issues. The results play an important role in informing Government policy. The survey captures the views of approximately 48,000 citizens across England & Wales annually – approximately 3,000 within London. Survey results are published quarterly and relate to a rolling 12-month period.

CPA

Critical Performance Areas - the suite of MPS corporate measures used to track progress against the delivery of corporate objectives

Criminal network

a network of individuals involved in ongoing criminal activity for some form of personal gain (usually profit, but can also be for social standing).

Disruption

a disruption has been achieved when a network is unable to operate at its normal level of activity for a significant amount of time.

Harm

where the consequence of pursuing an activity is seen to have an adverse effect on the social, physical or economic well being of individuals or a community.

OGC

Office of Government Commerce

SD

Sanction detection - police generated detections of a crime. SDs include charges, cautions, fixed penalty notices [FPN], taken into considerations [TIC], summons and cannabis warnings

Serious acquisitive

Includes residential robbery, burglary and motor vehicle crime

SPI

Statutory Performance Indicator

TIC

Taken into consideration – the clear up of multiple crimes attributable committed by one criminal e.g. multiple burglaries

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