Stop and Search report

Report: 7
Date: 10 June 2010
By: Deputy Assistant Commissioner Territorial Policing on behalf of the Commissioner

Summary

This report provides an update of current MPS Stop and Search practice.

A. Recommendation

That the MPA Strategic and Operational Policing Committee note the MPS stop and search update in response to the MPA Commissioning Brief.

B. Supporting information

Performance

1. For the financial year April 2009 to March 2010 the MPS conducted 488,455 PACE searches, 90,834 Section 60 Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 (s.60) searches, 81,184 Section 44 Terrorism Act 2000 (s.44) searches and 1,225 Section 43 Terrorism Act 2000 (s.43) searches. See Appendix 1 for full borough breakdown.

2. PACE searches have remained at the same level as the previous year. There has been a downward trend in the volume of s.44 searches since the introduction of the refined use of tactics on 20th July 2009. There has been an overall decrease in the volume of s.60 searches compared to the previous year, s.60 searches peaked at around 12,000 in October 2009 and have since reduced to around 5000 per month.

3. Table 1 - MPS Disproportionality rates (April 2009 to March 2010)

4. The latest Home Office Section 95 data shows that nationally black people were 7.6 times more likely to be stopped and searched under PACE than white people in 2007/8, an increase over the previous year (2006/7) when the ratio was 7.1 to 1. In the MPS the national trend is reversed, Black:White ratio for 2007/8 was 4.1 to 1, a decrease over the previous year (2006/7) when the ratio was 4.4 to 1. Current MPS data shows the decrease continued through 2008/9 to 4.0 to 1 and has remained at this level for 2009/10.

5. The volume of s.43 searches across the MPS is relatively low (typically around 100 per month) therefore any disproportionality data produced would not be statistically significant.

6. With regards to gender, over 90% of searches (across all search powers) are of males.

7. Disproportionality is currently based on population estimates drawn from 2001 census data but there have been major demographic changes since then. The census counted the population as a whole, in their homes, and takes no account of:

• Local demographics at the time;
• The numbers on the street ‘available’ to be stopped and searched when powers are most used;
• Crime rates in areas where stop and search is most used;
• Other policing considerations, such as the targeting of prolific offenders, descriptions of suspects given by victims and witnesses, and local police priorities.

8. Violence and other crime occur disproportionately across areas of London. The core duties of the police are to keep the peace, prevent and detect crime and protect property. In doing so, operations to combat street violence will inevitably have a disproportionate impact upon different areas and different communities at different times.

9. Richmond upon Thames borough are recorded as having high PACE Black:White disproportionality, a ratio of 10.1 to 1. The census records a very high white population in Richmond and less than 2% black population. With such a small percentage black population, a relatively small number of stops on black people will have a significant impact on the Black:White disproportionality ratio. There are schools, colleges and universities in Richmond which attract students from all ethnic backgrounds and who reside out of the borough. Richmond upon Thames Stop and Search Monitoring Group conducted in depth analysis into their local stop and search data in 2008. They found that 50% of the people stopped in the borough were non-resident and 65% of those stopped and searched, that came from black and minority ethic backgrounds, were also non- resident. From the analysis they concluded there does not appear to be any discrimination either on the grounds of ethnicity or on grounds of age in Richmond.

10. Hackney borough are recorded as having a PACE Black:White disproportionality ratio of 2.8 to 1. The census records a non-white population of around 40% but the London Development Agency reported in 2007 that surveys of school children suggest it may be in the region of 65% or higher and thus a minority ethnic community becomes a majority ethnic community. With a large black population, it would take significantly more stops on black people to impact on the Black:White disproportionality ratio than on a borough with a population profile like Richmond. Amongst a host of other types of calls, there are around 100 calls for police deployment to urgent matters from the public each day in Hackney. Many of these types of call have individual pieces of information from members of the public, often about crime in action, and a proportion of these may cause officers to stop and search citizens on the street. There has been academic research on this issue, Waddington et al (2004) referred to research by Marian Fitzgerald (1999) that concluded that if police are acting on the basis of a witness’s description of an offender then they exercise relatively less discretion compared to stop and searches taken entirely on their own initiative. It was also found that when officers were engaging in lower discretion stop and search racial disparity increased.

11. Hackney is not immune from violence, notably the use of knives and guns. In response there has been an increase in the use of many of the search powers. Those stopped and searched are often from minority communities, but to bring some context, crime data would indicate that 75% of London's gun crime involves the victim and suspect both coming from the Capital's black communities. This activity is often guided by Operation Trident that is a mainstay to prevent mostly young black men from losing their lives often in senseless violent crimes and by careful engagement it enjoys community support and confidence.

12. The MPS is unable to ‘hotspot’ where stops are taking place or overlay them against crime hotspots or taskings because there is no field on the current Form 5090 - used to record stop and search - to record a Geo-code, and the database that stores the data does not Geo-code the location. The Personal Digital Assistants - palm-top computers - recently introduced by the MPS do have GPS capability, however, they are not GPS enabled and therefore it is not possible to Geo-code stops recorded on the PDA.

13. Some analysis of individual Boroughs has been undertaken under Operation Pennant which measures MPS performance in this area. This demonstrated that stop and search activity was broadly aligned to MPS crime hotspots.

14. The MPS is unable to provide any data relating to persons charged or cautioned subsequent to a stop and search because this information is recorded separately on two different databases which are incompatible. Arrests and subsequent case disposals are recorded on the national NSPIS custody computer system, stops and searches are recorded on the MPS Crimint Plus ‘Stops’ database. However, recent government stop and search reduced recording proposals would make this possible if implemented, as stop and searches resulting in arrests would be recorded on the NSPIS custody computer system.

15. Performance, strategic direction and other issues relating specifically to stop and search are debated during B/OCU stop and search seminars with stop/search lead officers. The next seminar is scheduled for 14 June 2010 and will be opened by the TP Commander responsible for stop and search. The debate and feedback from the seminar will contribute towards the cycle of organisational learning around stop and search.

Operation Pennant

16. Operation Pennant has been in existence since 2006. In that time there has been significant improvement in a number of key performance areas. This includes:

• Data quality (Self Defined Ethnicity inclusion) where compliance has improved from 76.4% to 93.3%*
• Timeliness has improved from 28.6 days to 4.8 days* as the average time to input stop and search records.
• Stop and account volume which has increased from 12,500 per month to 66,500* per month

* Based on performance year to date April 2009 - January 2010

The black:white disproportionality level has also reduced over the same period from 4.4 to 4.0

17. Through Operation Pennant the MPS has significantly reduced the occasions when Self Defined Ethnicity is recorded by officers as ‘Unknown’. With the introduction of the new Crimint Plus ‘Stops’ database, Self Defined Ethnicity is now a mandatory field which officers must complete and this should further build on the improved performance in this area. However, there will always be occasions when Self Defined Ethnicity is not recorded: Where the officer’s presence is urgently required elsewhere; Situations involving public disorder; When the person does not appear to understand what is required; Where the person declines to define their ethnicity.

18. In 2008 the format for Operation Pennant changed following an internal review. The revised process involves the data being shared with chairs of all the Community Monitoring Groups. This enables access to comparable data in a number of key performance areas which can be utilised in local engagement with Borough senior officers.

19. At a strategic level the co-chairs of the Community Monitoring Network, Black Police Association and the Metropolitan Police Authority meet with the TP Commander responsible for stop and search to scrutinize MPS wide data. Engagement at local strategic level aims to increase MPS transparency and accountability, particularly where the data indicates that there is disproportionality. Performance is also a permanent agenda item for discussion within the MPS Stop and Search Strategic Committee which has a wider circle of participants.

Community Engagement

20. The quarterly stop and search report submitted by the MPS to the MPA Community Engagement and Citizen Focus Committee on 22 February 2010, there was an update on community engagement activities. Types of engagement activity reported on included:

• A stop and search ‘Roadshow’ for young people in Newham.
• Young Advisors engaging with Territorial Support Group (TSG) officers during stop and search training sessions in Waltham Forest.
• Young people from Brent attending Hendon and engaging in role play scenarios with recruits.

21. It is recognised that to have the trust of confidence of London's communities in all stop and search powers, it is essential to have a structure is in place to listen and respond to the communities - Boroughs have a community monitoring network looking at local stop and search activity. Monthly stop and search data is made available via the internet in order that communities can hold senior officers to account in relation to stop and search activity.

22. As well as the community monitoring network, there are various other stop and search community engagement and liaison activities taking place across the MPS on an ongoing basis. Whilst there would appear to be obvious benefits from conducting such activities, measuring and evaluating their effectiveness is notoriously difficult as there are rarely quantitive or qualitative outcomes. Anecdotally the vast majority of community engagement events receive a very positive response from community attendees. Overlaying a process of evaluation in all cases would be overly bureaucratic and arguably counter productive.

23. The MPS conducts a Public Attitude Survey which measures public confidence and satisfaction in policing. Historically there has been a strong correlation between public confidence in the use of stop and search and public confidence in policing generally. Therefore, whilst the Public Attitude Survey does not specifically measure confidence in stop and search, it is an indication. For the financial year up to December 2009, 61% of people said the local police do a good/excellent job.

24. The MPS is taking advantage of engagement opportunities offered by the Met-Track scheme to deliver stop and search messages centred on 'rights and responsibilities'. Met-Track attempts to engage with those hard-to-reach young Londoners who might not otherwise have had the opportunity to take part in sport. This is achieved in various ways, getting referrals from Youth Offender Team's, schools, and other youth engagement services in the 22 boroughs Met-Track presently operates in. Currently around 80 per cent of participants do not offend or re-offend after engagement with Met-Track. Based in a fun environment, and delivered in a style that engages even the most challenging of audiences, an important message along with police-community engagement, is being effectively delivered. There are numerous testimonies and case studies that reinforce the effectiveness of Met-Track.

25. Brent BOCU recently produced a stop and search DVD which concentrates on the importance of the conduct of the encounter. The DVD was shown to every officer, it was introduced by a member of the Senior Management Team who also led a debate on the issue after showing it. Following the delivery of this training/briefing, Brent saw a 21% reduction in the number of stop and search public complaints against officers. Whilst they are unable to directly link the reduction to the DVD, they are confident it was a significant contributing factor.

Operation Blunt 2 stop and search performance data

26. There is no field on the MPS stop and search Form 5090 for officers to record whether a stop/search relates to Operation Blunt 2 or any other specific policing operation. As this information is not recorded on the form it is not input on the Crimint Plus ‘Stops’ database and therefore cannot be searched using the Stops Reporting Tool. The Home Office recently announced proposals to reduce the amount of information recorded for a stop and search encounter, adding new fields to the current form and database to enable the MPS to capture Operation Blunt 2 information is not conducive with the reduced recording proposals.

27. The MPS undertook a review of Operation Blunt 2 in February 2009 which required an enhanced program of community engagement. Local boroughs were instructed to use community observers as part of search operations conducted under the operation. In addition, Task Force officers were made available to key community stakeholders, including MPA members, who were invited to observe any part of the operation from briefing, intelligence gathering processes to local tactics on the ground. All Boroughs were required to complete formal, documented assessments of community support and include concerns regarding the enhanced search activity. The further review indicated a broad and consistent level of support for the ongoing enhanced stop and search tactics. There was also consistent support from young people, including those from BME communities, who appreciated the need to remove lethal weapons from the few for the overall safety of the many.

28. Operation Blunt 2 has established a Young Londoners Engagement Program. This is a regular one day event attended by schoolchildren aged 13 - 19 years from London Boroughs where the Blunt 2 Taskforce is deployed to most frequently. The main aims are to explain to young people what Operation Blunt 2 is about, why stop and search is so important, the dangers of carrying a knife, and relevant legislation. The young people get involved in role reversal scenarios where they take on the role of a Superintendent and have to decide when they would implement a Section 60 authority based on information presented to them. They also attend Operation Blunt 2 briefings and recount to officers their experience of stop and search and explain how they expect to be treated by police. Equally it gives an opportunity for officers to explain to young people why sometimes they have to use reasonable force when conducting encounters where there are officer / public safety issues.

Section 60 Criminal Justice and Public Order Act

29. The MPS is currently in the process of reviewing the operational use of Section 60 Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 across all boroughs. All boroughs have been reminded they must be proportionate in their use of Section 60 and they must give careful consideration to the appropriateness of geographical area to which the authority applies, particularly when considering implementing ‘borough wide’ authorities. The format of the Section 60 Authorisation form and Section 60 database have been updated to enable improved quality assurance of the use of the power across London. Since the updated form was introduced in March 2010 authorising officers are able to indicate whether certain factors relate to the authorisation. Analysis shows 85.4% of authorities are Gang related, 78.7% are knife crime related and 76.4% are related to serious youth violence.

30. Violence and other crime occur disproportionately across areas of London. The core duties of the police are to keep the peace, prevent and detect crime and protect life and property. In doing so, its operations to combat street violence will inevitably have a disproportionate impact upon different areas and different communities at different times. In the year to March 2009 25 teenagers lost their lives to violence. Some 84% of victims (21) were from BME communities and 73% of victims with serious stab injuries (during the same period) were from BME communities. This disproportionate impact of knife crime is most significant in the under 20 age group.

Equality and Human Rights Commission report on stop and search

31. Following publication in March 2010 of the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) report ‘Stop and Think’ an MPS Gold Group was formed to carefully consider the reports findings and recommendations. Significantly, MPS Disproportionality rates were not highlighted by the EHRC and the MPS welcomes the fact that the report acknowledges the work the MPS has already undertaken under Operation Pennant.

32. The MPS was highlighted in the report for its ‘excess’ number of searches of black and Asian people. ‘Excess’ searches are calculated from the number of black or Asian stops and searches that would result if their stop and search rates were equal to that of the white population in the same area. Excesses will therefore be higher where there are larger black/Asian populations and/or the difference between the black/Asian and white search rates are greater, as is the case in London.

33. The number of ‘excess’ searches should also be put into context with the average number of searches carried out by each officer. If all uniformed operational officers are considered then the number of MPS PACE searches per officer equates to 2 per month. Comparable National figures (for average searches per officer per month) are not available, however there is no evidence to suggest that the MPS is dissimilar to other Metropolitan forces.

European Court of Human Rights ruling on Section 44

34. In the case of Gillian and Quinton, the court held that the use of Section 44 of the Terrorism Act was incompatible with Article 8 (ECHR). The reasoning for this decision stems mainly from the Court’s understanding that blanket authorities existed within UK forces and that this approach is not compatible with the European Convention on Human Rights. The use of the power has changed considerably since the time of the original case in 2003 when two litigants were stopped and searched, and the increased proportionality of use and application of Section 44 in particular within the MPS is seen to have an impact on the debate. The numbers of searches continues to fall and consultation is ongoing with the community, media and interested parties.

35. The UK Government is seeking permission to appeal the Gillan decision to the Grand Chamber of the European Court. An MPS Gold Group has been set up to manage the response in the intervening period. It has been decided that the MPS will continue to use Section 44 as usual, according to the guidelines that were already in place prior to the judgment, until such time as any appeal has been heard.

36. The mobility of terrorists presents a significant challenge to modern societies and requires sometimes significant responses. The Vehicle Borne Improvised Explosive Devices found in the Haymarket were manufactured in Scotland and driven hundreds of miles south to London. The Person Borne Improvised Explosive Devices used in the 7/7 attacks, were manufactured in Leeds and brought to London by vehicle, public transport and on foot. The recent Times Square incident in New York highlights this tactic is still an option for terrorists.

37. The largest single user of the Section 44 power in the UK is the MPS (over 90%). The MPS has been mindful to review and update its position on authorisation and use and more detail will now be imparted. The MPS review was conducted in early 2009 and while the operational aspects were examined as previously described other key aspects were looked at:

• That officers’ are reminded of the impact of the ‘encounter’ with the searched person and the effect this might have on community relations both positively and negatively.
• That the MPS engages fully with communities and also other wider stakeholders like the Muslim Safety Forum, Community Monitoring Network, London security community and Liberty. This was done to encourage broad-based engagement.
• That the MPS refine the use of Section 44 into a more focused and directed way that makes the most efficient use of intelligence, valuable resources and minimises impacts on community life and provides justification for use.
• That tactical decisions are made with the single priority of safety and security.

38. Following recommendations the ‘refined’ deployment model was applied pan-London. The practice of authorisation has now been changed to defined specific identified areas. There are currently 117 dedicated counter terrorism zones that equate to 10% of London’s geographical areas. This development demonstrates the commitment by the MPS to ensure the legitimate and proportionate use of this vital power.

39. The MPS conduct broad community engagement around the use of Section 44 to invite critical feedback. The following observations, gathered from a variety of community consultations, demonstrate involvement and tempered support for the power. This can be evidenced through Equality Impact Assessments and other community contacts.

40. There have been significant changes to the way the power has been authorised and deployed since 2003. The measurable results are a response to infrequent but potentially catastrophic threats. There is no evidence that these threats will diminish. During the intervening period there have been several terrorist attacks and plots in the UK and the intelligence picture and attack methodology has changed frequently. The removal of Section 44 would impact police tactical options. Losing Section 44 would interrupt the hostile environment created for the ‘would be’ terrorist and this could result in an increase in the threat level to the UK and leave communities less protected. An MPS Gold Group continues to develop work towards contingencies around the potential for losing the powers and the development work that may need to be done around the legislation.

Next Steps

41. The Next Steps Project involves a number of activities intended to demonstrate the effective and efficient ‘intelligence led’ use of stop and search. The main focus for the work is based on the premise that the vast majority of people in all communities will support the use of the power if forces can demonstrate its value in tackling criminal activity. It has been designed jointly by the Home Office/NPIA and follows identification of good practice nationally. Many of the building blocks of Next Steps have come from initiatives introduced in London particularly in relation to data gathering and consultation and the MPS has been involved in the development of the overall product.

42. Three national pilot sites have been identified to take the Next Steps project forward. Dorset and Merseyside Police are due to commence their pilots in May 2010. The MPS TP Chief Officers’ Group agreed in March 2010 that the MPS and Lewisham in particular will be the third pilot location. The evaluation process is still being finalised, however, it is anticipated that the MPS pilot will commence in the summer of 2010.

Access to Stops data

43. Whenever a stop and search take place a record of the encounter is completed as required by PACE Codes of Practice, Code A 4.1, irrespective of whether the person searched is found not to be involved in any crime related activity. In the MPS the (paper) stop and search Form 5090 or (electronic) PDA version are used for this purpose. The recorded information is transferred onto the MPS Crimint Plus ‘Stops’ database to enable the MPS to accurately respond to Home Office requirements for stops data, Freedom Of Information Act requests and to enable timely publication of data (via the Monthly Monitoring Mechanism) for scrutiny by local monitoring groups. All users of the Crimint Plus system (Metropolitan Police and Police Staff) will have access to the records.

44. Any dissemination of ‘Personal Information’ from Crimint Plus must be conducted in accordance with the guidance contained in the Management of Police Information (MoPI). Various considerations are required before any dissemination of intelligence can take place. Should dissemination of intelligence occur outside the remit of ‘Police to Police’ sharing, there must be either a Memorandum of Understanding in place, an Information Sharing Agreement or the circumstances must constitute a lawful ‘Policing Purpose’. To date ‘Personal Information’ contained within the Crimint Plus ‘Stops’ database has not been shared with external agencies.

45. A person who has been searched is entitled to receive a copy of the search record at any time within 12 months of the date of the search.

46. The MPS keeps information recorded during a stop and search for 7 years 2 months to comply with the requirement of the Limitation Act 1980 for a civil action to be brought.

C. Race and equality impact

1. The Metropolitan Police Service recognises its duty to police with the confidence of all communities is impacted upon by how stop/search powers are used and the interactions conducted. Through this report specific attention has been given to the race and equality impact, that being a substantive issue.

2. The use of Stop and Search, and Stop and Account in the MPS is directed by Policy and six Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs). The aim of the MPS Stops and Searches Policy is to ensure that officers comply with the law, act within their powers and that all Stop and Account and Search powers are used fairly, responsibly, without unlawful discrimination and with respect for people being searched. This Policy and SOPs are published in the public domain and are subject to regular review by the Stops and Searches Team.

3. The MPS publishes on the Internet, the Monitoring Mechanism on a monthly basis. This provides each BOCUs data on stop and search and for the MPS as a whole. This allows Community Monitoring Groups to scrutinise the use of stop and search by their local BOCU and to hold them to account, it also allows for comparisons to be made by BOCUs against the rest of the MPS.

4. The MPS and every individual BOCU has completed an Equality Impact Assessment on their use of stop and search.

5. Operation Pennant, a performance framework for stop and search, provides London wide scrutiny of stop and search. Disproportionality and arrest rates are scrutinised down to team and individual officer level.

D. Financial implications

There are no additional financial implications arising directly from this report.

E. Legal implications

The possible appeal in the Gillan case to the Grand Chamber in relation to Section 44 could have a significant operational impact on the use of those stop and search powers by the MPS.

F. Environmental implications

There are no environmental implications arising directly from this report. It should be noted however, that the MPS Environmental Strategy 2005-10 will, in the latter part of the 09/10 financial year, be superseded by a MPS Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Strategy 2010-13 that is currently in development. This CSR Strategy will address a broader scope of issues than the current Environmental Strategy, to also include social and economic issues such as public confidence in policing, community engagement, responsible procurement etc. It is possible that a number of material issues likely to be identified by the CSR strategy (and which will subsequently be included in a CSR reporting framework), will include some of the issues addressed by this Report. For example, stakeholder engagement, partnership working, training & awareness, equalities, organisational reputation, etc.

G. Background papers

None

H. Contact details

Report author: Inspector Andy Walker, TPHQ Patrol OCU, MPS

For information contact:

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

Abbreviations

BOCU

Borough Operational Command Unit

CJPOA

Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994

EHRC

Equality and Human Rights Commission

GPS

Global Positioning System

MoPI

Management Of Police Information

MPS

Metropolitan Police Service

PACE

Police And Criminal Evidence Act 1984

PDAs

Personal Digital Assistants

TP

Territorial Policing

TPHQ

Territorial Policing Headquarters

NPIA

National Police Improvement Agency

NSPIS

National Strategy for Police Information Systems

s.60

Section 60 Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994

s.43

Section 43 Terrorism Act 2000

s.44

Section 44 Terrorism Act 2000

SDE

Self Defined Ethnicity

SOPs

Standard Operating Procedures

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