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Customer satisfaction surveys
Report: 5
Date: 14 November 2000
By: Commissioner
Summary
This report is an update of the information supplied to the September Professional Standards and Performance Monitoring Committee and includes details of the latest quarter, July - September 2000. Also included is further information on levels of mixed feelings and dissatisfaction. The issues raised in the discussion of this topic at PSPM in October will be progressed and reported separately.
A. Supporting information
Performance headlines BVPIs and PPIs
1. The following table provides details of MPS performance against the best value and policing plan performance indicators relating to customer satisfaction. Results relate to the first six months of 2000/2001.
| Standard | Performance | |||
| BVPIs (BVPI 23) | Qtr1 2000/01 (Apr - Jun) |
Qtr2 2000/01 (Jul - Sep) |
6 months 2000/01 (Apr - Sep) |
|
| % of public satisfied with police action in response to 999 calls (6 mth base 2,409) | 90% | 77% | 78% | 78% |
| % of people satisfied with the service received at police station enquiry counters (6 mth base 1,736) | 80% | 68% | 74% | 72% |
| % of victims satisfied with police initial response to a report of violent crime (6 mth base 1,140) | 90% | 74% | 77% | 76% |
| % of victims satisfied with police initial response to a report of burglary of a dwelling (6 mth base 1,569) | 90% | 84% | 84% | 84% |
| % of victims of road traffic collisions satisfied with the police service at the scene of the collision (6 mth base 961) | 90% | 92% | 90% | 91% |
| Policing Plan Indicators (PP D a1) To achieve parity in the level of satisfaction recorded amongst victims of racially motivated crime and the victims of other crimes |
||||
| Difference in satisfaction with police initial response (BVPI question) | 4.4% | 12.3% | 8.4% | |
| Difference in overall impression of police on this occasion (charter question) | 1.8% | 7.8% | 4.9% | |
2. The standard is being achieved in only one out of the five BVPIs (road traffic accidents). Of the remaining four BVPIs, the greatest difference between standard and achievement is in the satisfaction with police initial response to the report of a violent crime.
3. The second quarter of the financial year shows that there has been an increase in satisfaction with the service received at front counters. The second quarter is also the larger sample (with a base of 1,100 people answering the question compared with 636 in the first quarter.)
4. Results for the two quarters show a widening of the disparity in the level of satisfaction between victims of racially motivated crime and victims of all crime. Further research into this level of disparity, and the results at borough level, is to be carried out.
Mixed feelings and dissatisfaction
5. As explained in the previous report, the 2000/2001 survey questions are now based on a five-point, rather than four-point scale, and include the option “mixed feelings”. The following tables provide a breakdown of the levels of mixed feelings and dissatisfaction for the three main surveys for the six months Apr - Sept 2000. This shows that, for front counter and crime surveys, the level of mixed feelings is generally lower than the level of dissatisfaction. The road traffic accident survey results, however, show a lower level of dissatisfaction than mixed feelings, with very few respondents expressing dissatisfaction with police service at the scene of the collision.
| Front counter survey | |||
| Satisfaction with service received: | (base: 636) | (base: 1100) | |
| % satisfied/v satisfied | 67.6% | 74.4% | 71.9% |
| % with mixed feelings | 13.7% | 10.1% | 11.4% |
| % dissatisfied/v dissatisfied | 18.7% | 15.5% | 16.7% |
| Crime victim surveys | |||
| Satisfaction with police initial response: | (base: 3641) | (base: 3487) | |
| % satisfied/v satisfied | 78.2% | 80.4% | 79.3% |
| % with mixed feelings | 10.5% | 10.1% | 10.3% |
| % dissatisfied/v dissatisfied | 11.2% | 9.5% | 10.4% |
| Road traffic accident victim survey | |||
| Satisfaction with police service at the scene of the collision: | (base: 457) | (base: 504) | |
| % satisfied/v satisfied | 92.1% | 90.5% | 91.3% |
| % with mixed feelings | 5.3% | 6.9% | 6.1% |
| % dissatisfied/v dissatisfied | 2.6% | 2.6% | 2.6% |
6. A comparison of the levels of mixed feelings and dissatisfaction for victims of racially motivated crime for the six months Apr - Sept 2000 is provided below. This shows that there is little difference in the level of mixed feelings between victims of racially motivated crime and victims of all crime; a greater variation is apparent in the level of dissatisfaction.
| Policing Plan Indicators (PP D a1) To achieve parity in the level of satisfaction recorded amongst victims of racially motivated crime and the victims of other crimes |
||
| All crimes (base 7,128) |
Racially motivated crimes (base 847) |
|
| Satisfaction with police initial response (BVPI question) | ||
| % satisfied/v satisfied | 79.3% | 70.8% |
| % with mixed feelings | 10.3% | 13.1% |
| % dissatisfied/v dissatisfied | 10.4% | 16.1% |
| Overall impression of police on this occasion (Charter question) | ||
| % good/v good | 71.1% | 66.2% |
| % with mixed feelings | 17.1% | 18.1% |
| % poor/v poor | 11.8% | 15.7% |
Comparison over time
7. In order to show a comparison with previous quarters, the results relating to the original Charter question used during 1999/2000, “overall impression of police on this occasion”, have been reproduced below. For the purpose of comparison (due to the move to a five-point scale), the performance during the current planning year includes half of the people with mixed feeling towards the question as well as those whose response was “good” or “very good”. This is a “best guess” and may not fully counteract the effect of moving to a five-point scale.
8. It must also be noted that from April 2000 the crime survey has been conducted by telephone interview, as opposed to a paper-based questionnaire, and this may also have had an effect on the results. In 1999/2000 the number of responses per quarter averaged around 1,300, whereas under the new system this has increased to around 3,600. The following comments must therefore be read in this context:
| Old survey (4-point scale) |
New survey (5-point scale) |
|||||
| 1st qtr 1999/2000 |
2nd qtr 1999/2000 |
3rd qtr 1999/2000 |
4th qtr 1999/2000 |
1st qtr 2000/01 |
2nd qtr 2000/01 |
|
| Counter survey | 82% | 79% | 80% | 81% | 72% | 77% |
| Crime survey | 90% | 90% | 92% | 90% | 78% | 81% |
| Road traffic accident survey | 94% | 94% | 94% | 93% | 92% | 92% |
9. The trend over time shows that less people are now satisfied with the service they received at the police station front counter, and in response to a crime (the quarterly figures, however, show a level of fluctuation, particularly in the last two quarters). Satisfaction in connection with road traffic accidents has dropped very slightly, although the standard of 90% is still being met.
B. Recommendations
Members are asked to note the report.
C. Financial implications
None.
D. Review arrangements
The issues raised in the discussion on this topic at the Professional Standards and Performance Monitoring Committee in October will be progressed and reported separately.
E. Background papers
The following is a statutory list of background papers (under the Local Government Act 1972 S.100 D) which disclose facts or matters on which the report is based and which have been relied on to a material extent in preparing this report. They are available on request either to the contact officer listed below or to the Clerk to the Police Authority at the address indicated on the agenda.
None.
F. Contact details
The author of this report is Lesley Nichols, MPS Corporate Performance Analysis Unit.
For information contact:
MPA general: 020 7202 0202
Media enquiries: 020 7202 0217/18
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