Research and Survey Unit

Report: 12
Date: 18 March 2004
By: Commissioner

Summary

This report provides a brief introduction to the Research and Survey Unit, highlights the major products of the Research and Survey Unit and the rationale behind the development of the Corporate Surveys.

A. Recommendation

That members note the report.

B. Supporting information

1. The Public Attitude Survey (PAS) (Appendix 1) has been revised to meet the needs of Step Change and the corporate need in light of PPAF to track Londoners’ confidence in a manner compatible with national developments. In light of the innovations introduced through the approach to Reassurance Policing via the MPS Step Change Programme, we have revised the PAS to serve as the measurement tool for Londoners’ confidence in police and the tool for continuous improvement at ward level. This approach takes its steer from the growing recognition that it is not always ‘crime’ that drives Londoners’ dissatisfaction with police and policing. Londoners’ experiences of anti-social behaviour will be tapped in a detailed way, and comparable with the British Crime Survey. We will be able to evidence our debate with the national agenda on other crime and disorder issues. The creation of the national incident recording system in PPAF is just one such example. We will also retain aspects of the PAS that will enable us to track changes in fear of crime. This survey merges information on people’s experiences of crime, antisocial behaviour and contact with police through a clearer structure of questions that enable a steer to action to challenge the problems people face in their local areas.

2. We have also planned for some of the questions to be identical to those used on the British Crime Survey, allowing us to explore the way in which Londoners’ experience crime and Anti-Social Behaviour compared to those who live in other forces as well as those to England and Wales as a whole.

3. The MPS introduces Reassurance Policing in 96 wards, beginning in April 2004. It makes practical sense to benchmark Londoners’ attitudes towards crime and anti-social behaviour in these 96 wards prior to the introduction of ward-based policing while simultaneously piloting this new survey.

4. The MPS already has a contract with MVA to carry out the PAS, and the company is able to undertake the pilot of this new survey. We have engaged the support of Dr Malcolm Hibberd, an expert in the field of police surveys of the public, to serve as a consultant on this revision. Together with the expertise of Professor Betsy Stanko, we are pleased that we will be putting together this new approach that will provide the MPS with robust information about people’s confidence in policing as well as information to drive the approach to reassurance policing.

5. Background to the Research and Survey Unit

• The Research and Survey Unit is part of the Corporate Performance Group (CPG).
• The Research and Survey Unit provides qualitative and quantitative research for senior police managers to enable them to make informed management decisions.
• The unit carries out research projects, surveys and evaluations for Boroughs and Departments as well as for the MPS as a whole.
• The unit is currently involved in evaluating the Staff Exit survey, Customer Satisfaction Surveys, Staff Satisfaction Surveys at Borough level as well as a number of larger ad-hoc projects.
• The unit is also responsible for managing the MPS Public Attitude Survey and the Corporate Customer Satisfaction Survey.

Corporate products of the Research and Survey Unit

The MPS Public Attitude Survey

6. The Public Attitude Survey measures Londoners’ perceptions of policing needs, priorities and experiences and has taken place every year since 1983.

7. Prior to the 2002 survey, approximately 4000 interviews were carried out annually across London, giving a representative sample of residents across the 32 boroughs. Additional ‘boost’ interviews were carried out amongst ethnic minority residents to ensure that sufficient interviews were obtained to analyse these groups separately when aggregated across London. This survey method was a ‘snap shot’ with interviewing taking place between the months of September-November. The main data sample was weighted to ensure it was representative of the population of London. This took place in two stages: weighting on age, sex, ethnicity and working status at the borough level; and weighting by borough population size.

8. In 2002 the Public Attitude Survey and methodology was redesigned in light of the increasing demand for more robust public attitude information and in tandem with new technological advances to survey methodologies. In previous years, the main drivers for the PAS were the MPS internal requirements for data to inform corporate and local planning cycles and EFQM self-assessment exercises. Annual qualitative and quantitative summaries were considered adequate to meet such a need. In 2002, the MPA Consultation Strategy, Local Crime & Disorder Audits and central government guidance raised the profile and importance of public consultation. Best Value Performance Indicators (BVPIs) and planning objectives are focused on public reassurance, fear of crime, police visibility and other perception based performance indicators that can only be gauged through surveys such as the PAS. The data needs to be able to not only monitor trends over time but also assesses the impact of particular events or initiatives.

9. This represents the move to meet the need for ‘real-time’ data, rather than a simple ‘snap-shot’ of data, which can quickly become dated or compromised by a single event. To this end, a ‘rolling-survey’ methodology was introduced with reporting occurring on a quarterly basis and annually at the end of each financial year. As well as achieving a better representative sample of a known residential population, the PAS also captures the opinions of VEM and ‘youth’ because it is administered face to face. Data is again weighted to ensure that it is representative of the population of London.

10. Because of the ‘Step-Change’ and ‘Reassurance Programmes’ the PAS has been redesigned to reflect the need for greater segmentation of the data and to provide results that are actionable strategically, tactically and locally. The revised PAS will serve as the measurement tool for Londoner’s confidence in policing and as a tool for continuous improvement at a ward level. This approach originates from the growing recognition that it is not always ‘crime’ that drives Londoner’s satisfaction with policing, experiences of anti-social behaviour also have an impact. The revised PAS will begin in April 2004 but will exclude wards that are already taking part in the reassurance survey. This will enable ward and borough level data to be collected and compared.

11. Methodologically, the survey will continue as usual with approximately 250 in-home interviews taking place in each borough on an annual basis and reports produced quarterly and annually.

The Customer Satisfaction Survey

12. In response to recommendations made in the Citizens’ Charter, the MPS introduced three divisional Customer Satisfaction Surveys in 1991. We now monitor such activity in response to Quality of Service Best Value Performance Indicators. The purpose of these surveys is to obtain the views of members of the public who have come into contact with the police, and to highlight areas where customer service could be improved. Constantly monitoring public satisfaction with the quality of service received will enable each BOCU to improve the range and quality of the service offered to members of the public.

13. The customer satisfaction survey includes the following that have come into contact with the police:

• Front counter callers at police stations
• Crime victims
• Road Traffic Accident (RTA) victims

14. Data was originally collected via postal questionnaires. However, in April 2000, the crime victim element was transferred onto telephone interviews. The RTA and the front counter caller components remained postal until 2002, when the views of the front counter customers were captured in the crime victim survey. The views of RTA victims are still captured via postal questionnaires.

15. Approximately 13,000 interviews are conducted annually across all BOCUs. This equates to approximately 100 interviews per BOCU per quarter. Boosted samples of racially motivated victims are also conducted. Strict criteria apply to which victims are suitable for interviewing. Victims excluded include domestic violence, sexual assaults, serious injury and victims under the age of 17. In April 2003, homophobic victims were included into the sample.

16. The RTA victim questionnaire is sent to the first 250 victims involved in personal injury accidents every quarter, whether injured or not. Each borough is responsible for distributing questionnaires. Questionnaires are sent to victims within one week of the accident being reported and must not be sent to: independent witnesses; people under 17 years of age; victims who suffer personal injury or trauma; victims who are hospitalised; anyone involved in a fatal incident.

17. With the introduction of PPAF, the methodology and questionnaires for the Customer Satisfaction Surveys are being revised. It is envisaged that the RTA element of the Customer Satisfaction Survey will be transferred onto telephone interviews. The Home Office is currently producing a standard questionnaire that contains a number of mandatory core and diagnostic questions. However, there is flexibility for the MPS to add in local questions.

Development of the corporate surveys

18. The Police Performance Assessment Framework (PPAF) includes citizen focus as one of its fundamental foundations for the delivery of police services. In light of the new requirements under the PPAF, the MPS Research and Survey Unit is revising its corporate surveys to capture people’s experiences and attitudes to inform improvement to citizen confidence and satisfaction. At the same time, the introduction of ward based policing in the MPS provides us with the perfect opportunity to track changes in citizen confidence and engage with residents on ward level.

19. These surveys are the barometer for the MPS in the delivery of citizen focus under the PPAF and are a forum for consultation with the public. The MPS now sees the Public Attitude Survey (PAS) and the Crime Victim Survey (CVS) as key vehicles in the MPS corporate information systems to drive improvement.

C. Equality and diversity implications

1. The respondents for the Public Attitude Survey are selected at random and meet set quotas according to age, sex, ethnicity and working status. At present, the Public Attitude Survey does not contact set quotas of LGBT people, refugees or asylum seekers or people without permanent homes. In order to achieve this other methods of consultation could be used such as focus groups or in depth interviews. This could include visiting areas where the homeless are known to reside, visiting community centres, contacting associations for lesbians, gay men and bisexuals and visiting asylum centres. Cost would be raised considerably.

2. The Crime Victims Survey randomly interviews victims of crime. Restrictions apply in terms of ‘suitable’ victims.

D. Financial implications

1. Consideration should be given to the resources required to manage the revised Public Attitude Survey, Crime Victims Survey and Reassurance Survey. Clare Delaney will conduct an impact assessment of the development of these surveys on the Research and Survey Unit.

2. The costs for the Public Attitude Survey and the Crime Victims Survey are covered by the Research and Survey Unit budget but will increase as changes are made to the surveys according to PPAF and the introduction of the Reassurance programme.

3. The PAS costs for benchmarking reassurance policing in 96 wards are quoted as:

4. The calculations for the additional costs of the Crime Victims Survey will be tabled on the day, as the Home Office are just supplying us with the requirements for the sample size.

E. Background papers

None.

F. Contact details

Report author: Adele Murdoch and Rachel Bennett, MPS.

For more information contact:

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

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