MPA management information report

Report: 06
Date: 25 September 2008
By: on behalf of the Chief Executive

Summary

The MPA management information report gives an update on Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) Public Attitude Survey (PAS) and Crime Victim Survey (CVS) data, further details on the EODB focus item and other equality and diversity information for hate crime, strength, recruitment and MPA staff figures.

The EODB committee on 25 September 2008 is focusing on equality and diversity as a function of Operation Blunt 2.

A. Recommendations

That Members note the report

B. Supporting information

1. The report aims to supply committee members with information relevant to equal opportunities and diversity, and highlight any emerging trends.

2. The management information paper at the last EODB (5 June 2008) included a brief analysis of some Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) Public Attitude Survey (PAS) and Crime Victims Survey (CVS) data. It was requested at the meeting that the management information paper to the September committee included a more detailed and recent analysis of PAS and CVS data.

3. This paper utilises PAS and CVS data, provided by the MPS Research and Survey Unit, for the full financial years 2005/06, 2006/07 and 2007/08 broken down by diversity strand. The analysis is based on trends in proportions, not actual numbers. This makes comparisons more useful as sample sizes differ between different demographic groups. Data was analysed by all diversity strands available but only commented on in the paper where there were notable differences to the overall trend.

4. Police officer and staff strength figures are to June 2008. Stop and Search figures are for 12 months to June 2008. Crime, detection, victim and accused data is for April 2008 to June 2008.

5. The main trends to be noted are:

Public Attitude Survey

6. The Public Attitude Survey (PAS) measures Londoners' perceptions of policing, identifies their priorities and explores their experiences of crime and policing. It covers issues such as public reassurance, fear of crime and police visibility.

7. The survey uses probability sampling to select respondents to ensure it is representative of the population of London at borough level. The survey includes 20,480 people [1], equating to 640 interviews per borough, per year. PAS interviews take place face-to-face in respondents’ homes continually throughout the year.

8. The PAS adopts a robust and reliable methodology, however some sample sizes (particularly around certain ethnic and faith groups) are small and should be treated with caution. Sexual orientation data was provided however sample sizes were small for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LBGT) respondents so, to avoid misinterpretation, the authors decided not to include analysis of this diversity strand within the paper.

Confidence in policing

9. Confidence in local policing overall fell slightly from 58% of respondents stating the local police did a good or excellent job in 2005/06 to 56% in 2007/08 [2] .

10. Respondents who defined their ethnicity as mixed or Asian saw notable percentage decreases in confidence in local policing (from 53% in 2005/06 to 47% in 2007/08 for mixed ethnicity groups and from 65% to 57% for Asian groups). Similarly, Muslim and Hindu respondents reported larger decreases in feeling that the local police do a good or excellent job (from 62% to 51% for Muslim respondents and from 74% to 66% for Hindu respondents).

11. Confidence in policing in London overall also fell by two percentage points over the period (from 64% to 62% - although this was a slight increase from 59% in 2006/07).

12. Again, Asian respondents reported notable decreases in confidence in policing in London (from 72% stating that the police in London did a good or excellent job in 2005/06 to 62% in 2007/08). Conversely, Mixed, Black and Chinese respondents showed slight increases (between 1 and 4 percentage points).

13. Respondents who defined their faith as Muslim or Hindu experienced notable proportionate decreases in feeling that the police in London do a good or excellent job (from 69% in 2005/06 to 58% in 2007/08 for Muslim respondents and from 84% to 63% for Hindu respondents).

Feelings of safety

14. Respondents’ feelings of safety whilst walking alone in their local area during the day increased slightly over the period analysed (from 96% to 97%).

15. Respondents from all ethnic groups either maintained or slightly increased their feelings of safety whilst walking alone during the day over the period analysed, with the exception of mixed ethnicity respondents (a decrease from 96% in 2005/06 to 94% in 2007/08). Respondents who defined themselves as disabled reported a slight fall in safety (2 percentage points from 94% in 2005/06) while non-disabled respondents maintained similar levels over the period (97%).

16. Feeling safe whilst walking alone after dark also increased slightly (from 71% in 2005/06 to 72% in 2007/08 – although this was down from 74% in 2006/07).

17. Similar to the findings above, all ethnic groups maintained or showed an increase in feelings of safety whilst walking alone after dark, particularly Asian respondents who reported a seven percentage point increase over the period (from 63% in 2005/06 to 70% in 2007/08). Respondents who defined their faith as Hindu also experienced notable increases in feelings of safety (from 63% in 2005/06 to 73% in 2007/08). However, again, feelings of safety whilst walking alone after dark of mixed ethnicity respondents decreased (from 71% to 66%).

18. Disabled respondents were considerably less likely to state that they felt safe when walking alone in their local area after dark (between 56% and 60% of disabled respondents stated they felt safe compared to between 71% and 73% for non-disabled) although both increased slightly (4 and 2 percentage points respectively) over the period analysed.

19. Males reported higher feelings of safety when walking alone after dark over the period analysed however this fell by one percentage point (to 78% in 2007/08). Females felt less safe, however their feelings of safety increased more notably over the period (from 61% in 2005/06 to 66% in 2007/08 – however this had fallen slightly from 68% in 06/07).

Feeling the police understand and are dealing with local issues

20. The percentage of respondents who agreed that the police understand the issues that affect their community remained stable between 2005/06 and 2007/08 (64%). There was a similar trend for non-disabled respondents however disabled respondents reported a five percentage point decrease in agreeing that the police understand local issues from 68% (higher than non-disabled respondents) in 2005/06 to 63% in 2007/08.

21. Asian and Chinese respondents reported an increase in feeling that the police understand local issues over the period analysed (from 67% to 71% for Asian respondents and from 49% to 74% for Chinese respondents [3] ). Muslim respondents also reported an increase (from 61 agreeing in 2005/06 to 67% in 2007/08). Older respondents (aged 65 years and over) also seemed slightly more likely to agree that the police understand local issues compared to other age groups, however this decreased (-3 percentage points from 71% in 2005/06) over the period analysed while other age groups remained stable.

22. Feeling that the police are dealing with local issues increased overall from 60% to 62%. Male respondent’s views remained consistent over the period (61%) while females experienced a slight increase (from 59% feeling the police are dealing with local issues in 2005/06 to 62% in 2007/08). Conversely, disabled respondents reported a slight (-1 percentage point from 60% in 2005/06) decrease while non-disabled respondents increased (+2 percentage points from 60% in 2005/06).

23. Mixed ethnicity and Chinese respondents saw the most notable increases in feeling that the police are dealing with local issues compared to other ethnic groups (from 52% to 59% for mixed groups and 50% to 71% for Chinese [3]). However, the proportion of mixed ethnicity respondents agreeing that the police are dealing with local issues still remained low compared to some other ethnic groups.

Worry about crime and anti-social behaviour

24. Respondents’ worry about violence in their local area fell over the three-year period (from 16% in 2005/06 to 13% in 2007/08) however showed a slight increase from 2006/07 (11%).

25. The percentage of mixed ethnicity and Asian respondents who were worried about violence showed notable falls over the period analysed (from 20% to 14% for mixed ethnicity groups and 26% to 21% for Asian groups) however, both showed an increase from 2006/07 and, in the case of Asian respondents, remained higher than other ethnic groups in 2007/08. Similar notable falls were reported by Muslim and Hindu respondents.

26. There was a greater decrease in disabled respondents’ worry about violence compared to non-disabled however levels were still 2 percentage points higher in 2007/08 (15% vs. 13% for non-disabled respondents). Respondents aged 25 to 34 years were the only age group to report a slight increase in worry about violence over the period analysed (+2 percentage points).

27. Although females saw a slight fall in proportions worried about violence (from 21% in 2005/06 to 19% in 2007/08) levels remained considerably higher than those for males (8%).

28. Worry about burglary in the local area fell from 13% in 2005/06 to 7% in 2007/08. Disabled respondents’ worry about burglary also decreased, however remained higher than non-disabled respondents (a fall from 20% to 14% for disabled respondents stating they were ‘very worried’ compared to 12% down to 6% for their non-disabled counterparts). Asian respondents’ worry about burglary also fell but remained slightly high compared to other ethnic groups (from 20% ‘very worried’ in 2005/06 to 10% in 2007/08).

29. Similarly, worry about car crime in the local area fell from 15% to 7% over the period analysed. Although male and female respondents displayed similar trends in decreases in both worry about car crime and burglary, female worry was consistently a few percentage points higher than males.

30. Muslim and Hindu respondents experienced more notable falls in worry about car crime and burglary, decreasing from proportionately above average levels in 2005/06 to more similar levels in 2007/08.

31. The percentage of overall respondents very or fairly worried about anti-social behaviour (ASB) increased from 35% in 2005/06 to 40% in 2007/08. Perceptions of high level ASB in the local area also increased from 12% to 18%.

32. Black respondents reported the most notable percentage increase in perceptions of high disorder in their local area, from 10% in 2005/06 to 20% in 2007/08. Disabled respondents also reported notably higher perceptions of disorder in their area compared to non-disabled respondents (from 17% to 25% vs. 11% to 17% for non-disabled respondents).

33. In addition, Muslim respondents reported proportionately higher perceptions of high disorder and larger increases over the period (from 16% in 2005/06 to 29% in 2007/08).

34. Asian respondents’ worry about ASB increased eight percentage points (from 38% to 46%) over the period analysed. Worry about ASB also differed by age. Although respondents in the younger age categories (15 to 24 years and 25 to 34 years) saw increases in worry about ASB over the period, the proportion of respondents who reported they were worried was slightly lower than overall. Respondent’s aged 35 to 64 years generally had higher levels of worry but did not experience a particularly large increase (from 40% in 2005/06 to 43% in 2007/08). However, the oldest respondents (aged 65 years and over) reported a ten percentage point increase in worry (from 35% to 45%) over the period analysed.

35. Both males and females experienced increases in worry about ASB however the proportion of females worried was higher than males (from 30% in 2005/06 to 35% in 2007/08 for males and from 39% to 45% for females).

36. The percentage of overall respondents perceiving drugs as a very or fairly big problem in the local area rose significantly from 19% in 2005/06 to 32% in 2007/08. White respondents experienced the largest increase (from 17% in 2005/06 to 32% in 2007/08) of all ethnic groups, however perceptions of this ethnic group were still slightly lower than some others over the period analysed (most notably mixed ethnicity and Asian).

37. Younger respondents (aged 15 to 24 years and 25 to 34 years) also reported notable increases in feeling that drugs are a very or fairly big problem (from 21% in 2005/06 to 36% in 2007/08 for those aged 15 to 24 years and from 16% to 34% for those aged 25 to 34 years). A notably higher percentage of disabled respondents also perceived drugs to be a problem in their area compared to non-disabled respondents (from 28% to 41% vs. from 18% to 32%).

38. Muslim respondents reported high perceptions of drugs as a problem in their area compared to other faith groups (from 25% perceiving them as a very or fairly big problem in 2005/06 to 40% in 2007/08).

Community relations

39. The percentage of overall respondents who felt that community relations between the police and the public in London as a whole were very or fairly good fell slightly from 71% in 2005/06 to 69% in 2007/08 (although had increased from 61% in 2006/07).

40. Mixed ethnicity and Chinese respondents and young respondents (aged 15 to 24 years) reported a slight increase in feeling that community relations in London were very or fairly good, however these groups also saw a slight increase the proportion who felt relations were poor3.

41. Disabled respondents reported a notable fall in feeling that community relations in London were very or fairly good (from 70% in 2005/06 to 63% in 2007/08) compared to their non-disabled counterparts (from 71% to 69%). However, both groups saw an increase from 2006/07. Hindu respondents reported a five percentage point decrease over the period (from 80% in 2005/06) however this remained proportionately higher than some other faith groups (most notably Christian and Muslim).

42. Females’ feelings that community relations in London were very or fairly good remained quite consistent over the period (70%, although with a dip to 62% in 2006/07). However males reported a six percentage point decrease from 73% in 2005/06 to 67% in 2007/08 (although this had increased from 59% in 2006/07).

43. Feeling informed about local policing increased overall from 45% in 2005/06 to 51% in 2007/08.

44. Black respondents were the only ethnic group to report a slight decrease in feeling very or fairly informed over the period (from 48% in 2005/06 to 46% in 2007/08 – although this had increased from 39% in 2006/07). Mixed ethnicity respondents reported feeling most informed compared to other ethnic groups. Disabled respondents reported only a two percentage point increase in feeling informed over the period analysed, compared to six percentage points for non-disabled respondents.

45. Hindu respondents saw low levels of respondents who felt very or fairly well informed and this fell one percentage point over the period analysed (to 38% in 2007/08 – this had fallen even more considerably from a rise to 46% in 2006/07).

46. The percentage of overall respondents who felt it was important to know a local police officer fell considerably from 88% in 2005/06 to 78% in 2007/08.

47. Only Asian respondents saw a slight increase in feeling it is very or fairly important to know a local police officer (from 83% to 85%). Other ethnic groups all reported increases in respondents who felt it was not important to know a local police officer. Although the proportion of older respondents (65 years and over) who felt it was important to know a local police officer also decreased, this was to a lesser degree (only four percentage points) with 87 per cent still feeling that it was very or fairly important to know a local police officer in 2007/08. Muslim and Hindu respondents also reported smaller decreases in the importance of knowing a local police officer over the period analysed (between one and three percentage points).

48. The percentage of overall respondents who reported seeing a uniformed police presence (either on foot or bicycle) at least weekly increased from 41% in 2005/06 to 55% in 2007/08.

49. All age groups reported an increase in seeing a uniformed police presence at last weekly, however this was most notable amongst the youngest age group (15 to 24 years) who reported an 18 percentage point increase (from 48% in 2005/06 to 66% in 2007/08). The oldest age group of respondents (65 years and over) also saw an eleven percentage point increase however this was from just 30% in 2005/06. The analysis clearly showed that older respondents felt they saw a uniformed police presence considerably less than younger respondents.

Crime Victim Survey

50. The Crime Victim Survey (CVS) measures victim’s satisfaction with the service they received from the police. Interviews are conducted with 18,000 victims of burglary, violent crime, vehicle crime, road traffic accidents and hate motivated crime per year.

51. Similar to the PAS, the CVS adopts a robust and reliable methodology, however some sample sizes (particularly around certain ethnic, faith, and hate crime motivation groups) are small and should be treated with caution.

52. The analysis below presents data around age, ethnicity and gender for the full financial years 2005/06, 2006/07 and 2007/08. Analysis of faith, disability and hate crime data was only available for financial years 2006/07 and 2007/08. From this financial year, the CVS will include sexual orientation details, however this was not available for the years analysed within this report.

Ease of contact

53. The proportion of overall victims surveyed who were satisfied with ease of contacting someone who could assist them increased from 86% in 2005/06 to 89% in 2007/08.

54. Older age groups seemed slightly more satisfied with ease of contact. The proportion of 55 to 64 year olds satisfied increased from 86% to 90%, while satisfaction of respondents aged 65 years and over increased from 91% to 94%.

55. Respondents who defined their faith as Hindu experienced a larger increase in proportion of those who stated they were satisfied with ease of contact (7 percentage points) over the two years analysed, although this was from a lower proportion satisfied compared to other ethnic groups in 2006/07 (80%). Respondents who thought the crime they were victim of was hate motivated experienced a slightly larger increase in satisfaction with ease of contact over the period than those who did not (6 percentage points vs. 4 percentage points) however satisfaction was lower for these respondents over the period analysed (8 percentage points lower in 2007/08).

Police actions

56. Overall satisfaction with actions taken by the police decreased from 77% in 2005/06 to 73% in 2007/08. Older respondents seemed more satisfied with actions taken and experienced a smaller decrease in percentage satisfied over the period analysed (from 79% in 2005/06 to 78% in 2007/08 for respondents aged 55-64 years and 87% (no change over period) for respondents aged 65 years and over). Conversely, younger respondents reported a slightly larger decrease and generally had lower levels of satisfaction compared to other age groups (from 76% to 71% for respondents aged 25-34 years and from 75% to 71% for respondents aged 35 to 44 years). Females seemed slightly more satisfied than males with police actions (with 79% stating they were satisfied in 2005/06 falling to 74% in 2007/08 compared to 76% decreasing to 72% for males).

57. All ethnic groups reported decreases in satisfaction with actions taken by the police. However, generally Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) groups had proportionately lower levels of satisfaction over the period compared to White respondents (ranging between 69% and 73% in 2005/06 down to between 63% and 69% in 2007/08.This compared to 78% down to 75% for White respondents). Mixed ethnicity respondents reported the largest decrease in satisfaction: from 76% satisfied in 2005/06 down to 63% in 2007/08.

58. Although there was little difference in the trend change over the period, respondents who defined their faith as Christian had higher levels of satisfaction than other faith groups (around three-quarters of Christian’s stated they were satisfied with police action compared to around two-thirds of respondents from other faith groups).

59. Victims who thought their crime was motivated by hate seemed considerably less satisfied than those who did not. Almost two-thirds (64%) were satisfied in 2007/08 (stable from the previous year) compared to almost three-quarters (74% - also stable from the previous year) who did not think there was a hate motivation. Over a quarter of victims (28% - up one percentage point from the previous year) who felt their crime was hate motivated stated they were dissatisfied in 2007/08 compared to just 14% (also up one percentage point from the previous year) who felt there was no hate motivation.

Police follow up/being kept informed

60. The overall proportion of respondents satisfied with how well they were kept informed for progress remained fairly constant over the three years analysed at 59%. Similar to other areas of satisfaction in the CVS, older respondents (65 years and over) reported higher levels of satisfaction with police follow up compared to other age groups (from 68% in 2005/06 to 72% in 2007/08).

61. Satisfaction of BME groups with police follow up was between 4 and 8 percentage points lower than White respondents in 2007/08. Mixed ethnicity respondents reported a notable fall in satisfaction over the period analysed compared to other ethnic groups (58% in 2006/07 to 53% in 2007/08). BME respondents also reported higher levels of dissatisfaction with police follow compared to their White counterparts (between 5 and 10 percentage points higher in 2007/08).

62. Satisfaction with follow up was lower amongst victims who felt their crime was hate motivated (falling from 53% satisfied in 2006/07 to 52% in 2007/08, compared to 58% increasing to 60% for victims who did not feel their crime was hate motivated).

Police treatment

63. Satisfaction with police treatment overall fell slightly (1 percentage point) over the period analysed to 91% in 2007/08. Again, the oldest respondents (65 years and over) reported the highest proportions of satisfaction (96%, remaining consistent over the period) compared to other age groups.

64. BME respondents had lower levels of satisfaction with police treatment compared to White respondents. Black and mixed ethnicity respondents experienced greater decreases in satisfaction (down 5 percentage points to 85% for Black respondents and down 5 percentage points to 82% for mixed ethnicity respondents). There was an increase in satisfaction of Chinese respondents over the period (from 85% in 2005/06 to 89% in 2007/08).

65. Respondents who stated they had a disability reported lower levels of satisfaction with police treatment compared to those who did not have a disability (from 88% in 2006/07 to 84% in 2007/08 for disabled respondents compared to 92% down to 91% for non-disabled respondents).

66. Satisfaction of victims who thought their crime was motivated by hate was 10 percentage points lower than those who did not (81% in 2007/08 compared to 91% - both down one percentage point from the previous year).

Overall satisfaction

67. The proportion of respondents satisfied with overall service reduced slightly from 79% in 2005/06 to 77% in 2007/08. As indicated in other measures, older respondents (aged 65 years plus) were most satisfied with overall service (from 89% in 2005/06 to 90% in 2007/08). Respondents in the younger age groups (16-24, 25-34 and 35-44) generally had satisfaction levels a couple of percentage points lower than overall respondents. Females were slightly more satisfied than males with overall service, although both reported a slight decrease over the period (from 80% satisfied in 2005/06 to 79% in 2007/08 for females and from 77% to 75% for males).

68. BME respondents had lower levels of satisfaction with overall service than White respondents. Mixed ethnicity respondents saw a particularly notable fall in satisfaction from 75% in 2005/06 to 66% in 2007/08. This group also reported the highest proportion of dissatisfaction in 2007/08 (23%). Respondents who defined their faith as Christian had the highest proportions of overall satisfaction (78% in 2006/07 rising to 79% in 2007/08) compared to other ethnic groups, between 4 and 7 percentage points higher than other groups in 2007/08.

69. Victims who felt their crime was motivated by hate had notably lower levels of overall satisfaction than those who did not, although the former did increase slightly over the period (from 65% in 2006/07 to 66% satisfied in 2007/08 for victims who thought their crime was hate motivated, and from 78% to 77% for those who did not).

Operation Blunt 2

70. To avoid duplication with the MPS paper on equality and diversity of Operation Blunt 2, this paper will not present analysis of any data in relation to knife crime. The MPS paper includes analysis of knife crime victim and accused profiles, section 60 stop and search data and disproportionality of stop and search.

71. The PAS now includes questions around Operation Blunt 2. The current quarter (quarter 2, July to September 2008) was the first to include these questions. Results should be available in mid-October.

72. In addition to the PAS, the MPS have conducted Key Individual Network (KIN)[4] surveys focusing on Blunt 2 issues. Results of these were not available at the time of writing this paper.

Findings from the MPA youth scrutiny

73. Young people consulted with as part of the MPA youth scrutiny highlighted how common knife carrying was amongst people in their age group. They also stated that they were aware that by carrying a knife they were potentially placing themselves in situations that could turn violent.

74. The MPA youth scrutiny recommended that the MPS provide clear information to young people on police tactics and operations that are taking place in specific areas or spaces used by them – for example the introduction of knife arches. Engaging with young people around issues that may directly affect them is crucial.

75. Stop and search was a key concern for young people involved in the MPA scrutiny. Although they recognised the value of stop and search, they were often concerned about how it was carried out by some individual officers. An online survey carried out as part of the scrutiny found that common reasons young people gave for rating their most recent contact with the police as ‘bad’ or ‘very bad’ included being stopped and questioned for no reason and feeling that the police did not treat them with respect.

76. The youth scrutiny recommended that all officers display courtesy and consideration when stopping and searching young people and that work continues to improve understanding of and communication with young people around stop and search.

Recorded Crime, Victims and Accused

Domestic Violence

77.  The volume of domestic violence recorded by the MPS during the first 3 months of 2008-09 has increased by 910 offences or by 7.1%. In contrast, the sanction detection rate has increased by 3.3 percentage points to 44.4% when comparing with April-June 2007-08.

78. The proportion of female victims of domestic violence has increased by 0.8 percentage points to 81.3% when comparing April to June 2008-09 with 2007-08.

79. The proportion of BME victims has remained at a similar rate of 45.3%.

Homicide

37. There were 43 homicide crimes recorded for the financial year period between April and June 2008, 6 fewer than the same 3 months in 2007-08.

38. 37 homicides have been detected between April and June 2008-09, 5 more than for the same period in 2007-08. The financial year detection rate stands at 86.0%. This is up by 20.7 percentage points from the rate recorded in June 2007 (65.3%).

Rape

39. Rape offences recorded by the MPS have increased by 188 or 41.4% when comparing April to June 2008-09 with April to June 2007-08. The longer-term trend shows a decrease in recorded rape during 2007-08 and the level rising again from the beginning of 2008-09.

40. The sanction detection rate recorded between April and June 2008-09 for rape offences is 30.1%, a 6.1 percentage point decrease on the rate recorded for the same period last year.

40. The percentage of recorded BME victims of rape has remained at a similar rate year on year at 40.4% [3]

41. The proportion of female rape victims has also remained at a similar rate of 92.9%.

42. Racist Crime: The volume of racist offences recorded by the MPS in the latest financial year period has risen by 76 offences or 3.2%.

43. The proportion of female victims of racist crime has increased by 2.1 percentage point to 39.7%. The proportion of BME victims of racist crime has decreased to 71.3% from 73.3% when comparing April to June 2008-09 with the same period in 2007-08.

44. The current sanction detection rate for racist crime is 34.7%, a 0.5 percentage point increase from the rate recorded for the same period last year.

Homophobic Crime

45. There has been a 10.2% increase in homophobic crimes recorded between April 2008 and June 2008 when comparing with the same 3 months in 2007-08. This equates to 27 more homophobic crimes recorded by the MPS. Data for 2008-09 shows the proportion of victims of homophobic crime who are female rising by 5.9 percentage points to 26.5%.

46. The proportion of homophobic victims who are BME has decreased by 0.2 percentage point to 21.4%.

Faith Hate Crime

47. Faith Hate Crime has decreased by 10.5% or 9 offences between April to June 2008 and April to June 2007.

48. There has been a decrease of 14.2 percentage points in the proportion of female victims of faith hate crime with the 2008-09 rate at 37.1% compared to 51.1% for the same period in 2007-08.

49. The proportion of BME victims of faith hate crime has increased by 2.3 percentage points to 47.6% for 2008-09.

Police Officer Strength

50. Police officer strength has increased by 1.3% when comparing strength at June 2008 which June 2007. Current police officer strength is 31,410. The percentage of police officers that are female is 21.5% and 8.3% are from BME communities. Targets set for the 2008-9 financial years for female and BME strength are 23% and 9.5% respectively.

51. The number of police officers at sergeant and above ranks has increased at a greater rate as overall police officer strength (+2.7% or 211 more officers). Despite the increase, the percentage of male to female officers in this group remains disproportional. There are 16.2% female officers at sergeant and above ranks as a proportion of all female officers compared to 29.1% of male officers as a proportion of all male officers.

52. BME officers at sergeant and above ranks as a percentage of all BME officers are 13.8%. This percentage is significantly disproportional to the percentage of non-BME officers at the same rank, which is 27.5% in June 2008.

Police Staff Strength

53. Police staff strength has remained at a similar level when comparing June 2008 with June 2007. There was 14,107 staff at the end of June 2008. The proportion of female staff is higher than male staff at 58.5% and 41.5% respectively; where as 23.4% of police staff is from BME communities.

54. PCSO strength has risen by 3.6% year on year with the current strength at 4,158. The percentage of female PCSO strength is 34.2%, where as BME PCSO staff makes up 31.1% of total PCSO strength.

Recruitment

55. The number of police officers joining the MPS has increased by 80.7% year on year, with 1,599 officers joining in the 12 months to June 2008. This was largely due to a high volume of officers recruited between December and February (418, 667 and 830 officers joining respectively). Of those officers joining, 27.4% were female and 13.1% from Black & Minority Ethnic community. Both proportions were higher than the current police officer strength figures.

56. The number of police staff joining the MPS in the 12 months to June 2008 is 2,073. Of those staff joining, 54.9% were female and 21.7% from Black & Minority Ethnic community.

57. There has been a higher intake of PCSOs over the last 12 months compared to the previous year, with 2,636 PCSOs joining compared to 2,176 in the comparative period. Of those staff joining, 38.3% were female and 26.7% BME.

Retention

58. Retention rates have remained high, with the overall police officer rate of 95.6%. Female officer retention rate is higher than male officers, with rates of 97.1% and 95.2% respectively. The retention rates for BME officers and non-BME officers are 96.0% and 95.6% respectively.

59. Police staff retention rates are slightly lower, but still remain at a high level. The overall police staff retention rate is 93.7% with female and male retention rates of 94.1% and 93.2% respectively. The retention rate for BME staff is 94.8% and non-BME staff 93.4%.

Stop and Search (PACE only)

60. The number of stop & searches recorded in the 12 months to June 2008 has increased by 23.1% year on year. There is currently 56.5 recorded stop & searches per 1,000 residents in London. The number of stop & searches varies by ethnicity groups. 38.2 stop & searches recorded per 1,000 White population, 157.1 per 1,000 Black population and 58.6 per 1,000 Asian population. Stop & searches recorded for all groups show a year on year increase, with the largest for White persons, increasing by 26.8% (previously the Asian group showed the largest increase).

61. The proportion of stop & searches of male persons is 94.7% or 383,225 stops rolling year, with just 21,265 women being stopped & searched over the 12-month period.

62. The total stop and search arrest rate has reduced slightly year on year. The arrest rate for White persons is 9.7% with a slightly higher arrest rate for Black persons at 10.8%. The overall 12-month rolling year arrest rate currently stands at 10.0% to June 2008.

Stop and Search (Section 44)

63. There were a total of 107,876 stop and searches conducted under section 44 (s44) between November 2007 and June 2008.

64. The number of stop and searches varied by ethnic groups. White (north European) persons were the highest proportion of people stopped under s44, accounting for over half of all those stopped (50.8%, or 54,794 stops). This was followed by Asian persons (18.7%, or 20,129 stops), Black persons (14.2%, or 15,315 stops), and White (south European) persons (9.7%, or 10,488 stops). Numbers were based on IC code as defined by officer.

65. The majority (88.3% or 95,244) of s44 stop and searches were conducted on males. Female persons accounted for just 11.6%, or 12,492 stops.

MPA Equality and Diversity Data

66. Data to July 2008 for the MPA shows that there is a total of 98 staff, of which 49% are female and 45% are BME.

67. The proportion of Women in the top 20% of earners (top 4 MPA grades – SMT, 1, 2 and 3) is 49.2% or 6 people. The proportion of BME staff in the top 20% of earners is 7.1% or 1 person. Both proportions are significantly lower than the proportion of Women and BME staff overall in the MPA.

68. The age range of staff at the MPA is between 24 and 64. The smallest proportion of staff are aged between 60 and 64 at just 5%, where as the highest proportion of staff is aged between 40 and 59, at 30% of all MPA staff.

C. Race and equality impact

All equality and diversity information has been incorporated within this report.

D. Financial implications

None.

E. Background papers

None

F. Contact details

Report author(s): Melissa Wagstaff & Gemma Deadman, MPA Planning and Performance Unit

For more information contact:

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

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