International Safer Neighbourhoods Conference

Report: 7
Date: 7 October 2005
By: Commissioner

Summary

It is proposed to hold an International Conference on 8/9 February 2006 – ‘Global Thinking: Local Policing – creating safe, active neighbourhoods worldwide’. The MPA are invited to co-host this conference and to underwrite the cost in the event of any shortfall of income against expenditure.

A. Recommendations

That the Committee decide whether the Authority should co-host this conference and underwrite its costs.

B. Supporting information

1. The neighbourhood community-policing programme is part of an international trend towards creating greater public satisfaction with local policing.

2. The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) has developed and implemented a unique style of policing with the consent of the local community it serves, its Safer Neighbourhoods programme, with the ring fencing of dedicated officers and Police Community Support Officers (PCSO). The results and impact of this programme in local neighbourhoods has been the envy of many law enforcement communities including Japan, China, Australia, Africa and Europe. This has resulted in their representatives visiting the MPS to find out more.

3. Presently the Prime Minister is the Chairman of the European Union. They are working on a common template for neighbourhood policing, for all member countries. Safer Neighbourhoods has been held up as the best example for this style of policing in Europe. The timing of this conference will help in their planning process and influence the European style of policing in the future.

4. With the Safer Neighbourhoods programme, and with other programmes running across the world, it is timely, for the MPS and the MPA in partnership to both celebrate this success and pro actively promote our programme, while at the same time allowing other countries to showcase their programmes, particularly with the European agenda. This will be done by hosting an international conference at the QEII Conference Centre over two days on the 8th and 9th of February 2006 entitled “Global Thinking: Local Policing – creating safe, active neighbourhoods worldwide.”

5. The timing of this event is particularly relevant, as the MPS will be on the point of embarking on the final stages of their programme, with an additional 368 teams being rolled out in a single year. This will demonstrate the confidence in ‘our’ style of policing. It will be before the local elections in London, and the vacancies in conference calendar make this an ideal opportunity. The planning process involves both the MPS and the MPA, and has been finely tuned to allow the tight timescales to be hit. This will ensure the Conference takes place as planned, with the maximum number of delegates.

6. MPS is confident that this conference would attract interest nationally and internationally to further enhance its viability. The programme is attached at Appendix B. The list of keynote speakers, the topics of the additional seminars and the international case studies combine to make this programme the best international conference ever to have been held on neighbourhood policing.

7. In addition a formal dinner event will be held on the night of the 8th where the Patron of the Safer London Foundation – HRH The Prince of Wales - has been invited to attend. This will bring the hosts and delegates together at an event, to reward a local community for their Safer Neighbourhood activities. This event will also target the business community to involve them further in crime reduction within London.

8. The Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police has personally been in contact with key speakers, inviting them to participate. Speakers involved in the case studies have been contacted and have already indicated they are very keen to be involved. The speakers for the additional seminars are still being worked up between the MPS and MPA. The opportunity for high-level national and international speakers for these seminars is very real. As a result of approaching speakers in Canada, they have already indicated they will be looking for some of their officers to attend as paying delegates, before any official marketing has taken place. At this time there is no indication to suggest that any of the named speakers will be unable to attend.

9. The QEII Conference Centre can take up to 670 delegates, and the evening event will be catering for up to 730 delegates. At present a mailing list of 6000 names has been compiled, and this will form the first line of marketing. The MPS has linked with the Home Office and Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Govt Office for London as well as other routes of communication to maximise the number of delegates to approach.

10. The MPS Events Income Development Unit (EIDU) are involved in finding sponsors for all parts of the event, from catering, to IT in order to keep the costs down as low as possible. However the income from delegates through the pricing structure will aim to cover the outgoings, without any undue reliance on the EIDU.

11. The planning process has set aside a provisional budget allocation of £345,000. The budget has projected income and expenditure and is dependent on 400 full paying delegates, 120 ‘local’ delegates, and 110-day delegates who do not require accommodation. Appendix 1 has identified allocated costs for outgoings and projected income costs. These costs do not account for any additional numbers over the 620, as the venue can cater for 670. In addition the costs do not consider any sponsorship income that may be generated to offset some of the costs of the conference. The numbers identified in Appendix 1 would present a surplus in revenue of £2515.

12. The MPS and London have reputations for excellence for achievement. We are a magnet for people across the world who are keen to be associated with this success, and this, plus extensive marketing via email and flyers, as well as personal contacts, and the extremely high calibre of keynote speakers, topics for case work and seminars will work to ensure as much revenue as possible is raised for the event, despite the short lead in time. The pricing of the event is highly competitive with other events.

13. The budget will be carefully monitored by the MPS and the MPA conference steering group to ensure all expenditure is warranted to keep outgoings as tight as possible. Finances have already been committed in order to secure accommodation for the conference.

14. The ideal is that a profit is made at this event, which can be donated to neighbourhood policing.

15. The event will be evaluated, both from the delegate’s perspective as well as the speakers. The evaluation will consider the cost benefit analysis of taking on the responsibility for such an event, and the learning from setting challenging timescales. The evaluation will be fed back into the MPA once it has been concluded.

16. The committee is asked to consider co-hosting this conference and to underwrite its cost.

C. Race and equality impact

Diversity issues and the relevance and benefit of neighbourhood policing to minority communities would form a major and integral part of the conference programme. The proposal to offer some discounted delegate places to key individuals representing communities and neighbourhood policing in London will ensure the community’s views will be represented, and the learning can be taken back into the communities.

D. Financial implications

1. The financial implications have been explained through this report, and have been presented at Appendix 2.

2. These figures are against numerical projections, and while every effort will be made by the MPS, and the MPA as well as other partners to fully market the event to ensure the income potential of the event is realised, there is a possibility that the revenue may not match the figures.

3. The MPA Treasurer comments that the budget projection shows a small surplus of income over expenditure. However, the Authority is being asked to underwrite any loss in the event of this not being the case. If members agree to the proposed conference, any shortfall up to £150,000 could be met from within existing MPA revenue budget. Any shortfall above that could be met from uncommitted reserves, in particular the Budget Resilience Reserve.

E. Background papers

None

F. Contact details

Report author: Ian Jenkins.

For more information contact:

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

Appendix 1

MPS Community Policing International Conference

8/9 Feb 2006

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