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A Practical Handbook for Community & Police Engagement Groups

October 2008

MPA/MPS Engagement and Consultation Duties

Each police authority has statutory community engagement and consultation duties. The Metropolitan Police Authority, working with the Metropolitan Police Service, is required to:

  • Directly Support Community/Police Engagement - making arrangements, in consultation with the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Service, for obtaining the views of people in the area about matters concerning their policing and gaining their co-operation with the police in preventing crime in that area. [1]
  • Consult on Police Objectives – ensuring that in the development of the annual policing plan objectives, the MPA has regard to issues raised in local consultative arrangements. [2]
  • Be full partners within Crime and Disorder Partnerships –to ensure that local people’s views on crime and disorder reduction priorities are included in the development of local crime and disorder Strategic Assessment and in the planning and implementing the crime and disorder partnership plan. [3]
  • Work with Local Strategic Partnerships – to co-operate in determining local community development priorities and targets and link these targets to the crime reduction work that we undertake in Boroughs.

Acknowledgments

The MPA would like to thank the borough Community and Police Engagement Groups, the London Communities Policing Partnership (LCP2), London’s Community Safety Managers, the Metropolitan Police, members of the MPA’s Engagement and Partnerships Unit and MPA Editorial Board for their help and support in the development of this handbook. This handbook also draws on the MPA’s ‘Testing the Concept” [4] review and the “Assessing and improving structures for community engagement”. [5]

For further information contact:

The Engagement and Partnerships Unit
Metropolitan Police Authority
10 Dean Farrar Street
London SW1H 0NY
Tel: 020 7202 0229

Introduction

Community focused policing needs the trust and co-operation of the public to enable the police to work closely with the communities they serve and to identify and address their problems and priorities. Such community/police engagement requires the systematic, stable, open and representative consultation and interaction that a well run Community and Police Engagement Group (CPEG) can provide.

That is why CPEGs are at the forefront of the local achievement of the MPA/MPS community engagement strategy[6] . They are intended to be representative of the local population, and particularly those groups (such as young people) that interact with the police in disproportionate numbers.

It is not an easy task to provide a forum in which local people can engage their local police, the local council, the police authority and each other in constructive discussion and debate about strategic policing, crime and community safety issues in their borough. It requires the goodwill and dedication of community volunteers and hard won knowledge, skills and experience.

Over the years of the development of these groups it has become apparent that there is a compendium of knowledge that this is not readily available to newcomers to CPEGs. This handbook has brought together much of that knowledge, thanks to the volunteers and professionals who have contributed to it from across London.

The handbook is intended to provide a foundation of accumulated knowledge to support CPEGs in their training and development; providing a little theory (the whys and wherefores of community engagement) and a lot more about the practice of the work.

Engagement and Partnerships Unit
Metropolitan Police Authority
October 2008

Section 1: Why have a Community Police Engagement Group?

Open Dialogue Between the Community and its Police

CPEGs are intended to provide the key local co-ordinating structure and forum in which local people can practically achieve the aims of the MPA/MPS Community Engagement Strategy[7] and support the development of citizen-focused policing.

CPEGs should provide the structure to enable local people to consult with their local police, the police authority, key stakeholders in crime and disorder reduction (the local authority, Primary Care Trust, probation service etc.), and each other, about crime reduction and strategic policing; including consultation on the Policing Plan and Neighbourhood Policing.

The need for a systematic two way conversation between the community and its police service was recognised in Section 96 of the Police Act 1996; which requires “that arrangements be made in the Metropolitan Police District by the Metropolitan Police Authority, after consulting with the Commissioner, for obtaining the views of people in that area about matters concerning the policing of the area and for obtaining their cooperation with the police in preventing crime in the area”.

What the CPEG does

CPEGs talk and listen to the local police, and question them on their policies and practices – and the police must be responsive. Effective Groups are inclusive and should be representative of their local community. In addition, as representatives of local communities and organisations working in those communities, CPCGs are ideally placed to act as the community consultation arm of the local Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnerships.

CPEG activities should not be limited to committee work but should include active community engagement with local groups and young people in neighbourhoods. Members should inform themselves of local crime and disorder reduction activity and monitor and actively influence local decision making, planning and prioritisation for the local delivery of policing and related community safety activities.

Various consultation processes are needed to capture the views of the community. To achieve a quality of consultation that can be respected by all participants CPEGs must involve:

  • Community leaders and those responsible for implementing borough-based strategies.
  • People with an interest in policing matters (such as neighbourhood watch co-ordinators and crime prevention panels).
  • People who might be more vulnerable, including members of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Community, those with mental health issues, survivors of domestic violence and people from ethnic minorities.
  • Young people.
  • Other forums in the borough concerned with crime reduction.

Best Practice in Community Consultation

CPEGs aim to represent the views of their communities. However, CPEGs are best placed to provide a crime and disorder community consultation forum and to assist the local police and Crime & Disorder Reduction Partnership (CDRP). Other sets of information will be useful to inform both the CPEG and the CDRP of crime and disorder concerns within boroughs.

These can be from:

  • Focus groups or meetings with young people or others to gather specific data which otherwise might be hidden (such as young peoples perceptions of risk or experience of crime).
  • Opinion surveys, which can be used to identify issues of local concern. However, these must be properly constructed and CPEGs may consider working with the police or council on these.
  • The findings of the local crime and disorder Strategic Assessment; as this will have determined the content of the Borough Community Safety Partnership Plan.
  • Borough/Local Authority research.

What are the Issues?

The kinds of issues on which the community should be consulted and engaged include:

  • Strategic prioritisation by the local police and priorities to be included in the crime and disorder strategic assessment Community Safety Plan[8]
  • Matters that affect the local community, including the policing of public transport and special police operations (confidentiality allowing).
  • Recruitment and training of police officers and PCSOs and the progress and evaluation of policing plans and services that have an impact on the community.
  • The problems facing ethnic minorities, young people and other minority groups
  • London-wide and national policing issues that have a local impact.

Section 2: The Superstructure of CPEGs

Operating principles of a CPEG

The CPEG is a membership forum, devised for regularly consulting with local communities about policing and community safety at a borough level and providing a key opportunity for statutory agencies to gain insight and understanding into the crime and disorder reduction needs and concerns of local communities.

Supporting Citizen Focussed Service Delivery

A CPEG must engage with the local police and council – the two most significant providers of crime and disorder reduction services in the field – and be respected by them. Consistent senior borough police and local authority representation at the CPEG is necessary for this to be effective.

Changing with the Times – Membership Development

Because of the rapidly changing nature of London communities, emphasis must be placed on capacity building and recruiting and replacing representatives. This is so to ensure that Community and Police Engagement Group membership has a full range of age, gender and ethnic, economic and cultural background.

Working with the Key Local Agencies and Organisations

A CPEG must be able to demonstrate considered, formal relationships with other relevant local bodies, such as the Local Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership, the Independent Advisory Group and Police Safer Neighbourhood Panels.

A CPEG must not be isolated from existing local consultative and decision-making mechanisms. Nor should it duplicate the work of existing local consultative arrangements, such as the Safer Neighbourhood Panels. It should, however, establish clearly defined linkages with such structures. This is especially so with the local Stop and Search Community Monitoring Groups and the Independent Custody Visitor Panel (ICVs).

Long, Wide View

A CPEG must exhibit a pan-borough perspective. It needs to provide a wide range of views to focus on local issues but it must also retain a strategic focus. The CPEG should not get involved in individual grievances and casework, for which there are more appropriate forums.

The CPEG plays an exclusively borough-wide, strategic and proactive role. This differentiates it from consultative work with a localised tactical or operational focus occurring at the borough level through Independent Advisory Groups, and at the ward level through Safer Neighbourhoods Panels.

Improving Crime Reduction through Constructive Dialogue

A CPEG must create an atmosphere conducive to constructive discussion and positive (though not necessarily uncritical) suggestions. Excessive negativity can stop a group from functioning effectively – and chase away members. CPEG members are expected not only to ask questions of and pose problems to the police and key partners, but also to supply ideas and propose solutions to solve problems.

CPEGs discussion should focus on substantive community safety matters and are about action. They should try to avoid getting hung up on ‘committee procedural matters’ - closure of which should be pragmatic and sought as soon as possible.

Answerability Mechanism

The CPEG should hold the whole of the local Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership to account for its decisions and actions on behalf of the community. A CPEG should negotiate a seat for its chairperson on the local Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership; and will have the MPA’s support in doing this.

Fed From Below

A CPEG should be fed information by the Safer Neighbourhoods Panels in the borough. A representative from each Safer Neighbourhood Panel should sit on the CPEG and represent their ward/panel. If this proves unmanageable, Safer Neighbourhoods wards could be clustered and each cluster should send a representative to the CPEG.

Feeding Up

A Community and Police Engagement Group should feed into pan-London policing policy setting and decision-making through the attendant Metropolitan Police Authority Link Member/Link Officer. It is important to involve the MPA Link Member and Link Officer to ensure that the voice of the CPEG is heard at CDRPs and in other fora.

IIt is also important that each CPEG ensures that its Chair attends the London Communities Policing Partnership[9] (LCP2) arranged meetings with the Commissioner and others developing pan-London work.

Equalities and Diversity

The London boroughs are diverse and this diversity should be reflected in both the subjects that are considered by the CPEG and the membership that comprises it. A CPEG should constantly seek to encourage the broadest base of representative membership and to support this put in place practical support arrangements for members to enable them to attend.

It is important that every effort is made to ensure that meetings and outreach work are planned and developed to enable the diverse communities of each borough to take an active part if they so choose e.g. ensuring that meeting venues are accessible and times appropriate.

CPEG Members and their Responsibilities

The membership of the CPEG should comprise of representatives drawn from the local community, who are supported by council officers, police officers, professionals and practitioners in the community safety field. CPEGs are not legal bodies of the Metropolitan Police Authority, but rather community-led ventures funded by the Metropolitan Police Authority.

The core membership of a CPEG must be appointed in an evidence-based way (see below), to ensure a diverse and broadly representative membership.

LLondon’s population is ethnically and culturally diverse; with approximately 30% from black and minority ethnic (BME) populations[10] . It is a must that each CPEG both does everything it can to recruit BME organisations to its membership and appoint BME officers to its executive group.

A justification must be available for the presence of each CPEG member on the membership. Free-for-all membership rarely delivers adequately diverse or representative membership. The limited membership should be manageable in terms of size to permit rational discourse and collective learning at its meetings.

The MPA strategy states: “The concept of community as a group of people who all hold something in common can be understood as either:

  • People who share a locality, or
  • People who are or share communities of interest, i.e. share an identity, for example on the basis of ethnicity or faith – or share on experience, such as people with a particular disability”

Members are required to communicate between meetings, with their respective communities of interest, identity or geography. This is to ensure as many people as possible are engaged and informed.

Members must take the community’s issues to the CPEG and the CPEG issues to the community. Occasionally, a CPEG will co-opt a person as a specialist advisor but lone, unaccountable, members with no mandate and no ability to cascade information to others must be avoided.

Size of a CPEG

It is vital that a clear justification is available for the inclusion of each member on the CPEG. Justifications might include, for example: members drawn from sizeable minority populations according to demographic data; members drawn from groups disproportionately victimised; members representing a designated Safer Neighbourhood; members drawn from traditionally underrepresented, excluded communities or representative of majority populations.

While there may be a limited pool of people with the required commitment, competence and availability, significant time and effort should be devoted to recruitment.

CPEG membership size must remain manageable. Previous experience of Community Police Consultative Group (CPCG) meetings suggests that constructive discussion is hindered and that structures become unwieldy when membership grows excessively. 40 CPEG members is the suggested maximum. Larger groups, often with an irregular attendance, are not easily manageable and often lack continuity of experience and purpose.

Although the limitation imposed upon numbers may make it more difficult to give direct voice on the CPEG to every one of the many groups constituting the living and working population of a London Borough, some members will be able to ‘wear multiple hats’, in as much as they may be able to speak for multiple communities of geography, identity and/or interest. They will also need to fulfil the two-way communication mentioned above.

IIn seeking out potential members, priority should be given to individuals, who are a member of the local community and are employees or affiliates of an organisation run specifically by and for members of that same community locally. This helps to ensure that the CPEG member can, in most circumstances, speak from personal experience; by virtue of his/her own membership of the community in question. They can also act as an informed advocate for that community.

CPEG in the Crime and Disorder Reduction Framework

CPEGs bring together the Metropolitan Police Authority, police, local authorities, partnerships and community groups to identify problems and to propose solutions. CPEGs are expected to make a contribution to crime and disorder reduction as well as acting as the mechanism for engagement between the Borough Commander, the Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership and the communities they serve.

One member of the borough Independent Advisory Group should sit as a member on the CPEG. This is to ensure that each group understands the activities and remit of the other, and so that appropriate information sharing can take place.

Safer Neighbourhood Panels involve the local community in police priority setting and operational decision making at a ward level. Their outlook is rightly restricted. CPEGs have a much wider focus than Safer Neighbourhood Panels and broader boundaries. A representative from each Safer Neighbourhood Panel, or an appointed representative of a cluster of Panels, should sit as a member on the CPEG.

Community and Police Engagement Group (CPEG) relationships to other bodies

The Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership is the primary strategic body for community safety in a London Borough. The link between the CPEG and the Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership is therefore crucial.

TThe CPEG should be able, through the scrutiny mechanisms established as part of the Police and Justice Act 2006 (yet to be commenced)[11] , hold the Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership to account. Additionally, the MPA would recommend that the Chair of the CPEG should sit on the Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership Executive.

The Value of Shared Membership and Shared Experience

Members shared by the CPEG, Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership and Local Strategic Partnership will ensure that the community’s voice is heard in Local Strategic Partnership deliberations regarding expenditure of other funds provided by central government for crime and disorder reduction.

Section 3: Practice Principles

This section is aimed at providing an essential and practical understanding of the practice principles of CPEGs.

Chairing a CPEG

It is important that a CPEG is chaired well.

The election of the Chair should be open and transparent and include the completion of a nomination form and written submission by the candidate, a Q&A session with the other candidates, and a secret ballot; where all members of the CPEG other than the Borough Commander, Lead Councillor and MPA Link Member vote for their preferred candidate.

The protocols for this election should be set and circulated well in advance to all members.

Once elected, the Chair of the CPEG is will benefit from close support from officers of the CPEG and from the MPA link officer.

Co-ordinating the CPEG

A CPEG, if it is to function effectively, requires adequate staff support. Irrespective of from where any staff are drawn, it is recommended that this support be provided primarily by a single co-ordinator. This co-ordinators role is about establishing and servicing a CPEG, providing both administrative support and project management.

The co-ordinator will be responsible for the day to day running of the CPEG and will support the Chair and officers (these can include a Vice or Deputy Chair, Hon. Treasurer and Press Officer) planning and administrating CPEG meetings, supporting the drawing up of the annual the CPEG Service Level Agreement and preparing for performance review meetings.

Model Terms of Reference for a CPEG

Aims and Objectives of the Group

The aims of the (Anyborough) Community and Police Engagement Group (CPEG) are:

  • To support local community engagement to help secure effective, citizen-focussed, accountable and responsive policing and council community safety activity for the Boroughs communities.
  • To provide a forum in which local people can engage the Borough Police, the Council, the Metropolitan Police Authority and each other in constructive discussion and debate about policing, crime and community safety issues.
  • To be representative of the local population, and more particularly those groups that interact with the police in disproportionate numbers.
  • To increase the capacity of community members not only to be informed of local crime and disorder reduction activity, but also, more proactively, to monitor and actively to influence local decision making, plans and priorities for the local delivery of policing and related community safety activities.
  • To enable people to understand, inform, influence, support or challenge policing and community safety policies that affect them. To provide a forum for information flow in all directions between the police, local authority, partnerships and the local community.
  • To be an inclusive body, which promotes equal opportunities and diversity, treats all people with respect, will not compromise its impartiality, and will not tolerate discrimination in any form.
  • To undertake an agreed programme of work to support community engagement and consultation with the police in (Anyborough) as agreed with the MPA and included within the CPEG Service Level Agreement. CPEGs activities should not simply be limited to committee work but should include active community engagement in neighbourhoods and with local groups.

Membership

The CPEG brings together community representatives and organisations who represent the views of the communities and voluntary and statutory bodies in the borough: These groups will include:

Model membership of a CPEG (this list is not proscriptive)

The following local groups should be represented on a CPEG:

  • Safer Neighbourhood Panels (ideally one representative per Safer Neighbourhood ward, to ensure adequate representation of communities of geography, as opposed to communities of interest and identity)
  • Metropolitan Police Service (Borough Commander)
  • Local Authority (Lead Councillor for Community Safety)
  • Metropolitan Police Authority (officer or member)
  • British Transport Police (Borough officer)
  • Borough Police Independent Advisory Group (Chair or Member)
  • Youth (e.g. youth council; youth forum; youth club)
  • Black and Minority Ethnic umbrella organisation (e.g. Race Equality Council) or specific representative group such as the Bangladeshi Association.
  • Older Peoples Forum (e.g. Pensioners’ Forum; Age Concern)
  • Small / Medium Enterprise (e.g. traders association)
  • Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender (e.g. LGBT Forum)
  • Voluntary Sector (e.g. Community Empowerment Network)
  • Victims (e.g. Victim Support Service)
  • Disability Umbrella Organisation (e.g. Disability Alliance)
  • Independent Custody Visitors (via the Metropolitan Police Authority)
  • Community Monitoring Network – (Stop and Search)
  • Probation (e.g. London Probation borough link officer)

Others that may be invited:

  • Homeless / housing (e.g. Refuge, Shelter)
  • Faith groups (e.g. interfaith network; church; mosque; synagogue; temple; gurdwara)
  • Traveller (e.g. site representative)
  • Refugee / asylum seeker (e.g. refugee forum)
  • Major stakeholder organisation (e.g. local football club)
  • Regeneration Area / New Deal for Communities Area / Single Regeneration Budget Area
  • Women (e.g. Young Women’s Project)
  • Borough Neighbourhood Watch
  • Mental Health (Mental Health Trust)
  • Drugs (e.g. rehabilitation service)
  • Alcohol (e.g. street drinkers initiative; wet centre)
  • Health (e.g. Local Hospital; Primary Care Trust)
  • Schools (e.g. Governor; Teacher)
  • Stop and Search monitoring groups

It should be borne in mind that a given individual can (almost always does) ‘wear more than one hat’, i.e. fit into more than one of the categories cited above, and so the number of members need by no means correspond to the number of categories listed.

Election of officers and role of officers

  • The Steering Committee will consist of the Chair, Treasurer, along with up to five other elected officers.
  • The Steering Committee shall have the power to co-opt other Committee members numbering no more than three annually.
  • The Steering Committee shall appoint an administrator/co-ordinator to run the day to day functions of the CPEG.
  • The Chair should not hold the position for longer than four years
  • No person shall retain the function of Chair, Treasurer or Secretary beyond 1 year without putting themselves forward for election by the Group at the annual general meeting.

The role of the Chair (see also detailed description)

  • To liaise with the Secretariat to ensure that agenda items are raised before each meeting
  • To ensure that each meeting is conducted in a orderly manner and to ensure that each member has an equal input into each meeting
  • To oversee that members adhere to the code of conduct during each meeting
  • To ensure that all decisions are agreed by members
  • To ensure that a clear work plan is developed in consultation with members.
  • To ensure that a work plan is agreed by members.
  • To ensure that a clear work plan is developed in consultation with and agreed by members and to use best endeavours to ensure that it is achieved.
  • To represent the group on external fora such as the local CDRP and pan-London bodies (eg LCP2)
  • To act as good employer [if applicable] and/or otherwise manage the administrative services, as necessary and to the extent agreed in any SLA with the service provider, in a manner consistent with good employment practice and common courtesy.

The Role of the Treasurer

  • The role of the Treasurer will be to keep accurate records of all transactions of the CPEG’s accounts.
  • The Treasurer will settle all incoming and outgoings of the CPEG account having with consultation, where necessary with other officers of the CPEG.
  • Cheques will only be released having been signed by the two designated signatories.
  • The Treasurer will give updates of the accounts at each CPEG meeting.

The Role of the Administrator/Secretariat

  • To liaise with the Chair to ensure that agenda items are raised before each meeting
  • Prepare typed minutes for each meeting
  • Take minutes at each meeting
  • To send out minutes of last meeting
  • Maintain the membership list
  • Liaise with the Chair to confirm the agenda and dates of meetings
  • To support the development of the Service Level Agreement (SLA), its quarterly monitoring, the development of work plans etc.
  • To maintain the day to day liaison and contact with members and partner agencies.
  • Manage the financial systems of the CPEG
  • Support the Press/Communications Officer (see below) to promote the CPEG to partners, the community and others.

Code of conduct

  • The Group requires all members to conduct themselves in a manner respectful of others (whether fellow members, staff, representatives of the police and other services, etc).
  • The CPEG should not tolerate, racism, sexism, sectarianism, and homophobia or any other behaviour that may bring the CPEG into disrepute.
  • If members fail to adhere to the code of conduct within the terms of reference formal procedures will need to be initiated by the officers of the CPEG
  • Any formal procedures against a member will be carried out through the chair (or vice or deputy chair) with the agreement of members of the CPEG
  • However, an appeal against a decision can be made made by the complainant in writing.
  • If a member is found to have brought the CPEG into disrepute, the CPEG can request the member to step down.

Administration

  • The CPEG will put in place local arrangements as necessary to meet its administration needs.
  • The agenda for CPEG meetings will be made publicly available and distributed to members at least one week before a meeting.
  • The Chair will agree the agenda before its publication.
  • The minutes of each CPEG meeting will be made publicly available at the next meeting and distributed to CPEG members no more than two weeks after the previous meeting.
  • The Chair will agree the minutes before their publication.
  • The Metropolitan Police Authority will conduct or commission an annual review of the effectiveness, efficiency, fairness, functions and membership of the CPEG.

Frequency of meetings and venues

  • The CPEG will normally meet four to six times each year.
  • The venue for next meeting will be decided at each meeting.
  • One of these meetings will be an Annual General Meeting at which the CPEG Chair, for the year ahead, will be elected from amongst the membership by members.
  • CPEG meetings will not usually last more than two hours.

Members Attendance

  • All members are expected to attend CPEG meetings.
  • If members are unable to attend Group meetings apologies must be given in advance.
  • A replacement for an absent member can be sent, however notice needs to be given to the Chair or the Secretariat of such a substitute.

Public Relations

  • The Chair (or other appointed officer) will act as press and public relations contact for the CPEG for the period for which they hold the post.
  • Any interview and comments by the authorised spokesperson (in first bullet point) have to be agreed in advanced by two other members of the CPEG.
  • Any other CPEG members approached by the press to give comment on the work of the CPEG should refer the press back to the authorised spokesperson.
  • If the Chair is unavailable to give comment at any time this is then passed onto the Secretariat.
  • Again any comments from the Secretariat need to be authorised by two other members of the CPEG.
  • Any comments given to the media should acknowledge the role and work of the CPEG.
  • All public communication from the CPEG will appear on the CPEGs agreed headed paper and make it clear that it is from the CPEG as a whole.

Sub Groups

  • As required, the CPEG can decide to establish sub groups to address specific issues. These should be time limited.
  • The terms of reference of CPEG sub groups will be formed through consensus with all members of the CPEG.
  • The sub groups will established on the basis of members experience and knowledge of practical areas or issues.
  • All sub groups report and be accountable to the full CPEG.

Public Involvement

  • CPEG meetings will be open to the public and press.
  • Meetings should be advertised in advance to encourage the community to be aware of the activities of the CPEG and to enable them adequate time to plan to attend.
  • Provision should be made at each meeting to enable any person attending to address or ask questions of the CPEG upon issues identifiable within its terms of reference.

Practical arrangements for a CPEG

Venues and Timing

CPEG meetings will be held in accessible venues which are appropriately equipped and located. They should be planned to occur at a time which is convenient for most members.

Attendance & Apologies

Where possible, members should confirm their intended attendance or submit their apologies for CPEG meetings as soon as possible to enable meetings to be properly planned in terms, catering, information distribution etc.

Conferences & Events

Where it is felt appropriate that the CPEG should have a representative attending a conference or other event, the CPEG may decide to fund this from within its budget. A report on the conference or event attended will be required from the attendee, so that the knowledge/expertise gained can be fed back into the CPEG.

Interpretation & Signing

If members of the CPEG require interpreters of any type, including signers, they will need to inform the CPEG at least one month before the date of the next meeting, due to a national shortage of such professionals. The CPEG will then arrange for the required interpreter or signer to attend, or will authorise the member to commission their attendance and compensate them accordingly.

Refreshments

Light refreshments will be provided at meetings of the CPEG for its members and members of the public in attendance.

Description of Post - the Chair of a CPEG

The Chair of Anyborough CPEG will:

  • Represent the views of Anyborough communities with regard to crime, policing and community safety in dealings with the police, Council and partners
  • Chair and facilitate CPEG meetings
  • Lead and focus discussions where appropriate at CPEG meetings
  • Bring impartiality and objectivity to CPEG decision-making
  • Facilitate change and address conflict within the CPEG
  • Ensure that decisions taken at CPEG meetings are implemented
  • Ensure that CPEG acts as good and respectful employer of any directly employed staff
  • Ensure that the CPEG complies with its adopted Terms of Reference.
  • Ensure that the CPEG pursues its aims as defined in its Terms of Reference
  • In conjunction with the Treasurer to ensure that the CPEG employs its resources and finances properly and exclusively in pursuance of its aims
  • Embody in their CPEG work Nolan’s seven principles of public life: selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty and leadership
  • Safeguard the good name and values of the CPEG
  • Represent the CPEG at relevant meetings and events
  • Act as spokesperson for the CPEG as appropriate, including with the press
  • Represent the CPEG at bimonthly meetings of Anyborough Crime, Drugs & Youth Partnership Executive and pan London meetings (such as LCP2 meetings)
  • Ensure the effective and efficient administration of the CPEG. Do necessary preparation for CPEG and other related meetings
  • Plan the annual cycle of CPEG meetings
  • Set agendas for CPEG meetings
  • Approve CPEG minutes prior to their circulation
  • Be elected by members of the CPEG at its Annual General Meeting (AGM)
  • Hold the position for a period of one year (renewable upon re-election) to a maximum of 4 years.

Footnotes

1.  Section 96 of Police Act 1996 [Back]

2. Section 6ZB of Police Act 1996 – as revised by Police and Justice Act 2006 and detailed in Policing Plan Regulations 2008 [Back]

3. Section 5 and 6 of Crime and Disorder Act 1998 and Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership’s National Minimum Standards (Formulation and Implementation of Strategy 2007) No.1830 [Back]

4. Testing the Concept of Borough Based Community Safety Boards. Published by the MPA. December 2006 [Back]

5. Assessing and Improving the Structures for Community Engagement. December 2006 [Back]

6. The MPA/MPS Community Engagement Strategy supporting our corporate priority “…to transform community engagement to help Londoners secure more responsive policing.” [Back]

7. The Community Engagement Strategy: www.scotlandyard.police.uk/dcf/files/ce_strategy.pdf [Back]

8. Police and Justice Act 2006 [Back]

9. LCP2 is the umbrella organisation for Community and Police Engagement Groups - funded by the MPA. [Back]

10. 2001 Census data reported in DMAG Briefing 2005-06 (GLA 2005) [Back]

11. Community safety scrutiny (Police and Justice Act 2006 [Back]

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