Headline performance report for 2011/12

Report: 6
Date: 13 October 2011
By: Deputy Commissioner on behalf of the Commissioner

Summary

This paper describes current performance in the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and in other corporate measures.

A. Recommendation

That Members note the performance in the indicators compared with their targets and the MPS’s activity underway to improve outcomes further.

B. Supporting information

1. This document reports on MPS performance against the 2011/12 KPIs and their targets as set out in the MPA/MPS Policing London Business Plan 2011-14. The Plan sets targets not only for 2011/12 but also for the coming three years to encourage planning over the long term as well as the short term in the current difficult financial environment.

Report structure

2. The portfolios only include crimes where there is a victim as opposed to state based crimes that are discovered as a result of police action to enforce the law or prevent disorder - for example drug and public order offences.

3. The body of the report focuses on how the KPIs are performing against targets, the current trend and other relevant factors. Appendix 1 lists the KPIs, their targets and current and past performance.

4. The indicators are graded red, amber or green in Appendix 1 as follows:

Red - performance off target and worse than at the same time last year

Amber - performance off target but better than at the same time last year

Green - performance is on or better than target.

5. Percentage figures are rounded to the nearest ‘whole’ number if over 20% i.e. 25% not 24.7% or 25.2%, unless a decimal place is necessary to support the point being made.

6. Unless otherwise stated comparisons over time below are between the first five months of the financial year 2011/12 (April to August 2011) and the equivalent period in 2010.

Serious disorder in August

7. Last month’s report described the serious disorders that occurred in London between 6th and 9th August. The MPS with help from other forces, kept a larger than usual number of officers on the streets of London from the end of the disorders to 9 September to forestall further disorder and to respond to the other significant events that occurred in this period, including Notting Hill Carnival, proposed marches of the EDL, UAF and community in Tower Hamlets and the funeral of Mr Duggan. There has been no significant disorder since 9th August and the Notting Hill Carnival took place with crime levels and arrests below those for previous years.

8. Over 3,600 offences were committed (as at 25th September) as a result of the disorders including 2 murders, 426 robberies, and 1,236 non residential burglaries - the usual charge for looting.

9. As mentioned last month, the MPS has launched Operation Withern to bring as many as possible of those offenders to justice. As a result, (as at 29th September) 2,744 people have been arrested and 1,619 charged. The charges include 9 for arson, 731 for burglary and 279 offences involving violence such as violent disorder and affray. However Operation Withern will be continuing for some time and will be resourced from across the organisation. The main task remaining is reviewing around 20,000 hours of CCTV footage to identify possible offenders - very time consuming and painstaking work.

10. The MPS is keen to learn from the disorders and its response to them. A Strategic Review Group reporting to Assistant Commissioner (AC) Lynne Owens has been set up for that purpose. It will focus on what actually happened and when; the information the MPS had and the action taken in response to that information; the effect of that action; and finally what could be done differently in the future to enhance our ability to meet a similar set of circumstances. Analysis of this complexity and importance takes care and time. It is anticipated that the initial findings will be available to the MPA in November.

Summary of Current Performance

11. The main points are:

• Violence Portfolio - there were 6,839 (-10.4%) fewer offences and within that - :
  • There were 3,096 (-10.2%) fewer offences where violent assaults (VWI) took place.
  • The number of homicide victims was 53 - 1 fewer than last year.
• Property portfolio - 7,533 offences (+3.4%) increase
  • There were 2,858 (+19.8%) more robberies
  • Burglaries went up by 3,087 offences (+8.6%),
  • MV crime rose slightly by 341 offences (+0.8%)
• The decline in the use of firearms and knives continued with 87 (-25%) fewer crimes where a firearm was discharged and 60 (-3.3%) fewer crimes where a knife was used to injure.
• All three types of hate crime were at lower levels than last year with decreases of 5.2% for domestic violence and 22% for both racist and religious crime and homophobic crime.

Violence Portfolio

12. There were 6,839 fewer crimes in the five months to August than last year. That equates to a drop of -10.4% which is only slightly down on the rate of decrease of 10.8% for the 4 months to July. That indicates that the portfolio was not greatly affected by the disorders in volume terms.

13. There has been one fewer victim of homicide in the five months to August but there were two homicides attributed to the disorder. Young victims (aged 1-19) declined by 4 from 7 last year.

14. Violent assaults where a person suffers a physical injury (VWI) fell by 3,096 or 10.2% as compared to the decrease of 10.3% for the financial year 2011/12 to July. There were around 127 VWI crimes due to the disorder which equates to under 3% of these offences for the month (5,041).

15. The sanction detection (SD) rate for the portfolio is 27.4% which is almost on a par with last year’s rate at this time of 27.8%. The SD rate for VWI is a little higher at 31.1% though that is below the rate of 32.0% for the same period last year.

Reported Hate Crime

16. Total reported hate crime offences have also continued to be below last year’s figures. Domestic violence has fallen by 1,129 (-5.2%) offences. Racist and religious crime has declined by over a fifth (-22%) or 955 crimes with a similar drop in homophobic crime of 22% / 150 offences.

Weapon Crime

17. The number of offences where a firearm was discharged and where a knife/sharp object was used to injure fell by 87 (-25%) and 60 (-3.3%) crimes respectively. All gun crime is 10.1% below last year’s level but knife crime is 17.1% or 910 offences above last year’s figure. This is because of the rise in knife personal robbery (1,032 / 37%) as has been the case for a number of months.

The Number of Sanction Detections (SDs) For Rape

18. There have been 69 (-25%) fewer rape SDs this FYTD with a total of 206. At the same time the number of recorded rapes has increased by 118 (+8.8%) so that the total for the FYTD is 1,452.

19. The Commissioner has made this a priority area at Performance Board - a regular meeting of senior officers to deal with performance. As mentioned last month, a detailed report on this issue is scheduled to be presented to the November meeting of this committee.

20. Last month’s report also set out the work underway with the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to improve the joint processing of rape cases. As part of that SCD 2 (the unit that deals with serious sexual offences) continues to monitor and to train its staff in the standard of evidence that is required and how it is presented to the CPS. There remain outstanding gaps in performance data sharing from the CPS in order to track case progression and timelines by SCD2 team and by crime type which are being progressed.

21. AC Owens and Alison Saunders of CPS London are meeting on 7th October regarding the new Director of Public Prosecutions Guidance issued in 2011. The meeting will discuss in the light of the Guidance, the greater responsibility to be placed on the police to make no further action decisions; the capacity of the future CPS’s Rape and Serious Sexual Offences unit to support the number of cases being presented to them and the unit's approach to prosecuting cases.

22. Victim confidence and satisfaction is one of SCD2’s three key performance measures. The senior leadership of SCD2 follow the results from the regular rape victims survey and take appropriate action to adjust policies and processes where necessary.

23. The survey cannot be used as a comparative performance monitoring mechanism. The trauma suffered by rape victims makes obtaining a large enough representative number of respondents to allow comparisons very difficult. Nevertheless, the survey does provide valuable insights into victims’ views of their treatment by the MPS. For the three months to June 2011 there were 68 victims who responded to the questionnaire, though some did not answer all the questions. The main points were:

• 85% were satisfied with the overall treatment they received initially.
• 93% were satisfied with their treatment by their SOIT officer through out their experience. (Those officers are specially trained to support victims of sexual offences.)
• 88% were satisfied with the way they were treated by the officer investigating their case (not the same as the SOIT officer.)
• 93% (14 respondents) were satisfied with the support from the police during their time in court.

However, 24% of respondents were not initially given a reference number

24. SCD2 is carrying out regular consultations with Victim Support and the expanded rape crisis provision across London. That will add to its understanding of issues for victims and identify areas for improved service to victims. Recently the MPS held the Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender engagement conference at Scotland Yard. A multi-agency group is now being formed to evaluate barriers to reporting rape as a direct result.

25. One of the MPS’s key partners in dealing with serious sexual offences is the Havens, who provide critical criminal justice support as well addressing sexual health needs for clients. This relationship is led through the Havens Strategic Board, chaired by SCD2 and in partnership with the NHS. This financial year has seen the first move to specialised commissioning contracts with the Havens Trusts to ensure accountable levels of service. Additionally, the current Haven strategic board work plan will focus on six objectives, including enhancing paediatric provision and trialling forensic nursing. This will lead to increasing our support to victims throughout the investigative process.

The Change in the Number of People Killed or Seriously Injured (KSIs) in Road Traffic Collisions

26. The monthly average number of KSIs in the 12 months to May 2011 decreased to 213 compared to 253 during the same period last year. That means that the number of victims of traffic collisions is below the monthly target of 222. In the first five months to August 2011 71 people died on the roads in London as compared to 54 last year and 78 the year before.

27. During the period there have been 1,733 drivers disqualified. That is 88 (+5%) more than for the same five months in 2010 when 1,645 drivers were disqualified.

28. Another important part of the work to reduce casualties on the roads is safety camera enforcement work. This activity is concentrated at collision ‘hot spots’.

29. The target for 2011/12 is 100,000 Notices of Intended Prosecution (NIPs) with at least a 65% positive outturn (depending on the severity of the offence the offender attends a safety awareness course, or pays the fixed penalty or a summons is issued). That calls for an average of 8,333 NIPs to be issued a month.

30. The first five months of 2011/12 had an average of 8,023 NIPs which is below this year’s target but over 1,200 above the performance for 2010/11 when the monthly average was 6,800. It is hoped to maximise the use of the safety cameras to increase the number of offences captured in order to achieve the 2011/12 target. 67% of NIPs have had a positive outcome for the FYTD with a 75% rate in August, above the 65% target.

Property Portfolio

31. The property portfolio covers most property crime including criminal damage, but excludes fraud and forgery because of national recording issues. During the period there have been 7,533 more offences (+3.4%) compared to the same period in 2010. The target for 2011/12 is for a 1% reduction.

32. This portfolio was much more affected by the disorders than the violence portfolio. Around 3,000 offences attributed to the disorders fall into this portfolio. However this is less than 1% of the 531,927 offences in 2010/11.

33. In the shorter term two crime types were particularly affected. Non-residential burglary and business robbery. Both went from decreases of 0.2% and 5.1% for the FYTD in July to increases in August FYTD of 7.1% or 977 offences and 6.8% or 79 crimes respectively. The 1,227 non-residential burglaries accounted for about a third of the 3,635 disorder offences at present. They make up 8% of the total FYTD for that type of burglary through to August of 14,796. The 110 business robberies in the disorders make up a similar percentage (8.8%) of the 1,240 business robberies FYTD.

34. Criminal damage offences with a victim have dropped by 3,537 offences or 9.6% compared to a 13% reduction for the four months to July. The reduction would have been over 12% if the relevant offences from the disorders are excluded from the calculations.

35. The other major parts of the portfolio that have decreased compared to last year are - thefts from motor vehicles by 178 offences (0.6%); thefts from shops by 1,494 offences (8.3%); and thefts of pedal cycles by 646 offences (5.5%).

36. Personal robberies have risen by 21% / 2,779 offences - the rate of increase is unchanged from last month - also 21%. There were around 300 personal robberies currently linked to the disorders - 2% of the total FYTD. The increased number of officers on the streets after the disorders and the large number of offenders sent to prison for disorder related offences could be factors in the lowering of the high levels of personal robbery that London was experiencing this year. If one discounts the personal robberies from the disorders, August 2011 was 7.5% above the level in August 2010. The 4 previous months had all been 16% or more above their corresponding month last year.

37. Residential burglary is up by 2,110 (9.5%) offences. It was the second best August in the last 5 years - only 1% / 42 crimes above last August and was 4.7% below July’s total. The enhanced police presence and more criminals in prison as a result of the stiff judicial line taken on offences linked to the disorders, may have contributed to that improvement. Normally August has more residential burglaries than July.

38. Theft from person is up by 2,743 offences (20%). There have been 519 (4.6%) more motor vehicles stolen this year. The number of other thefts are 4,074 offences (8.4%) above last year’s level at this time. The numbers of these crimes recorded for the disorders was not significant.

39. The property portfolio sanction detection rate has declined from 11.3% to 10.6%. Although there have been 605 fewer cautions and 436 fewer penalty notices for portfolio crimes, the number of charges has increased by 417 or 2.7%. The SDs resulting from the crimes in the disorders will not have a huge impact on the SD rate for the portfolio. A much higher than usual proportion of those offences will have a number of people charged and SD rates are based on the number of crimes for which one or more persons are charged.

Anti-social Behaviour (ASB) Incidents

40. The new national definition of ASB was due to be introduced in August 2011. The introduction would have involved a major disruption to the system managing demand for service and so the introduction was carried out right after the Notting Hill Carnival. Consequently we will provide data for this KPI from next month but it will be for baselining purposes because we will not have past compatible data for comparisons.

41. The MPS is participating in trials on dealing with ASB being conducted by the Home Office and a report on those trials is scheduled to be presented to this meeting.

42. Three pilot sites ((Westminster, Hammersmith & Fulham and Kensington & Chelsea) are jointly trialling virtual ward panels to increase community involvement in local priority setting and problem solving approaches. It is hoped that panels that ‘meet’ through the internet will enable people who do not attend formal structured meetings, to take part in panel discussions.

User Satisfaction & Satisfaction of White & BME Users with the Overall Service & People Who Think the Local Police are Doing a Good Job

Both are based on quarterly data and no new survey data is available

43. The first post-disorder results for both the confidence and user satisfaction surveys are expected to be available in early November and will be subject to longer term monitoring to examine the impact of the disorder upon confidence and satisfaction.

44. Both local Safer Neighbourhood teams and the central Safer Neighbourhood unit have been proactive in community engagement work in the period following the recent public disorder. Among the action taken were:

• Electronic community updates to the business community throughout this period.
• Working with the boroughs to contact community groups, Key Individual Networks and local community representatives (MPs, councillors etc.) to ensure consistent and supportive messages concerning police activity were communicated effectively
• Daily briefings to borough command units identifying intelligence issues and highlighting areas of good practice concerning community engagement with a view to developing consistent approaches across London.

45. The MPS is looking at its engagement processes with migrant and BME communities in order to increase confidence in those communities. It is also reviewing youth engagement schemes across the MPS in order to identify best practice to improve confidence.

46. The central Safer Neighbourhood unit and the MPA are carrying out a joint examination of neighbourhood panels. They will be looking at the structure, representation and effectiveness of the current panel model to see how panels can be improved to enhance community involvement.

London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games - Olympic Safety & Security Programme

47. This KPI looks at the status of the five Olympic Safety and Security Strategy Programmes and the three London venue areas against achievement of the results set out for them in the Strategy. Those 8 areas are graded as red, red/amber, amber, amber/green, or green. The target for the KPI as a whole is amber/green which means the most common grade was amber followed by green. For September, four pan-Olympic programmes are amber/green, the other one is amber/red and the three London venue programmes are amber.

Deliver a Balanced Budget for 2011/12 as per the Policing Plan 2011/14

Current Position: As at July 2011 +£6.2m (Amber)

48. The MPS is committed to delivering excellent policing from tackling ASB and other crime in neighbourhoods through to dealing with terrorist and the most serious criminals often ‘behind the scenes’. However it is doing that within a financial climate of an expected reduction in its spending (compared to 2010/11 budget) of some £600m by 2014/15.

49. To do that the MPS is:

• Reducing its inanimate costs
• Delivering an effective business and operational model including:
• Undertaking process improvement activity
• Sharing services with and across the MPS
• Exploring a range of outsourcing and joint ventures
• Only then reducing operational officers and PCSOs.

50. The scale of the challenge is:

51. Action underway to achieve savings:

• Major change programmes now well established and being progressed with appropriate corporate infrastructure in place to track progress and identify and manage interdependencies and risk.
• Early departure schemes developed and in operation using earmarked reserves established for this purpose.
• Star chambers established to monitor and control staff vacancies and officer deployment.
• Financial monitoring being amended to manage and control capital and revenue budgets more effectively with increased focus on major change programmes.
• Developing indicators that can be tracked for:
• People: Percentage of Senior Management & Supervision ratios
• Property : Estate Size
• Transport: No of vehicles
• Procurement: Level of spend below £1m covered by contracts
• Development of the 2012-2015 Policing London Business Plan already underway

52. The general risks to achieving the necessary savings;

• Non-delivery of major change programmes and/or double counting of savings. Budget includes some resilience to cover such costs;
• Additional pressures placed on the service both operationally and financially e.g. Recent disorder, Riot Damages Act, Royal Wedding, State Visits, increased public order/protest events, withdrawal of partnership funding;
• Enactment of the Police and Social Responsibility Bill which will result in additional in year costs for which there is no specific provision in MPS, although MPA have created a £2m reserve;
• Less resources than anticipated (£5.4m) being available to support 2011/12 and 2012/13 budget spend from 2010/11 due to grant clawback by the Home Office.

53. The specific issues identified at Period 4 (July 2011) are:

• The budget pressures arising from the policing response to recent public disorder within London (Operation Kirkin), the ongoing police investigation (Operation Withern) and potential riot damage costs falling to be met by the MPA/MPS. The forecast to Period 4 does not yet reflect the risk that additional costs relating to these operations and RDA might not be met in full by HO.
• Business Groups are forecasting a year-end Police Officer strength of 32,128.
• A continuing over-strength position within Territorial Policing and the management of reductions driven through the TP Development Programme.
• Later than planned finalisation of match-funding agreements and other cost-sharing posts resulting in reduced income.
• In-year budget pressures on the delivery of a number of major change programmes.
• A potential budget pressure between the estimated cost of the early departure programme and the earmarked reserves available.

C. Other organisational and community implications

Equality and Diversity Impact

1. The regular review of the statistics provided enables the MPS to highlight areas for diversity and equality consideration and address them accordingly.

Consideration of MET Forward

2. The KPIs and other corporate measures covered in this report reflect performance against the key outcomes of Met Forward: fighting crime and reducing criminality, increasing confidence in policing, and providing better value for money.

Financial Implications

3. The costs associated with the monitoring and reporting of the data set out in this report are all covered by existing budgets as set out in the current approved Business Plan.

Legal Implications

4. There are no direct legal implications arising, as this is a performance monitoring report.

5. The MPA has a duty to secure the maintenance of an efficient and effective police force for its area and a duty to hold the chief officer of police of the force to account for the exercise of his functions and those persons under his direction and control, under s6 of the Police Act 1996.

6. The MPA also have a specific duty to monitor the MPS’s performance against the Policing Plan under s6ZA of the Police Act 1996, as inserted by paragraph 8, Schedule 2 of the Police & Justice Act 2006 and the Police Authorities (Particular Functions & Transitional Provisions) Order 2008.

7. The Strategic Operational Committee is the relevant committee to receive the report as its terms of reference set out it is responsible for considering and maintaining police performance against the Policing Plan targets and any performance indicators set locally or by external organisations.

Environmental Implications

8. This report contains no direct environmental implications.

Risk Implications

9. Risks and opportunities identified in related to performance against the KPIs are reflected in the content of this report.

D. Background papers

None

E. Contact details

Report author: Worth Houghton, Strategy and Performance Unit, Deputy Commissioner’s Portfolio, MPS

For information contact:

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

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