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Report 14 of the 10 Jul 03 meeting of the Finance Committee and updates members on the approach of the MPA and MPS in the context of the 1999 Audit Commission report entitled ‘Action Stations’ – Improving the Management of the Police estate in England and Wales.

Warning: This is archived material and may be out of date. The Metropolitan Police Authority has been replaced by the Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime (MOPC).

See the MOPC website for further information.

Action Stations revisited

Report: 14
Date: 10 July 2003
By: Commissioner

Also presented at:

  • Co-ordination and Policing Committee –21 July 2003

Summary

In 1999 the Audit Commission published its report entitled ‘Action Stations’ – Improving the Management of the Police estate in England and Wales. This report seeks to update and inform members on the current approach of the MPA and MPS in the context of the report.

A. Recommendations

That in view of the upcoming HMIC inspection due in this area members note and agree this report.

B. Supporting information

Introduction

1. In 1999 the Audit Commission (AC) published its report entitled Action Stations – Improving the Management of the Police Estate in England and Wales. A copy of the original report is available in the Members library and available on the internet at www.audit-commission.gov.uk.

2. Since that date the MPA and the MPS have moved forward on a number of fronts, including the adoption of the Building Towards the Safest City (BTSC) strategy.

3. Using the format of the original AC report the following sections seek to record and note the work of the MPA.

Update on AC report and statistics, etc

4. The original report noted that generally many buildings are ‘out of place’. BTSC accepts this. The AC report noted that 87% of buildings are more than 20 years old but interestingly the MPA has 35% of the estate pre 1930 compared to 21% for the Action Stations Report. In the MPA estate 85% are more than 20 years old (1999 base).

5. The AC report stated that the combined estates are worth £2 .6 billion and cost £170m a year to run in 1999. In 2003 the MPA estate is worth £800 million approximately and costs £145m a year to run. The estate is currently being re-valued and we expect the element of that value which relates to the operational estate (PSs) to rise significantly. This is due to a change in the valuation method which now accords to Finance Codes and Best Practice.

6. The repair backlog in the AC report was reported at £205m. The MPA estimate in 2003 is estimated at £36m. However, given recent events, resilience of key strategic sites is now very high on the agenda and may require greater investment.

7. In some forces, AC noted, up to a third of space was allocated to non-operational use (including canteens and recreation space). Best MPA estimates in 2003 suggest a figure of 15.6%. It is recommended that the designation of canteen space by the AC as non-operational is inappropriate. Many are also used for meetings and “touch down” places to work.

8. Audits of space show poor utilisation in the AC report. The MPA has moved on in this regard and full transparent details (reported via Efficiency and Effectiveness Group) are available that show under utilisation (and indeed over crowding) are primarily a result of the “out of place” argument rather than poor practice.

9. The partnership use of the estate is highlighted in policing advantage terms by the AC. In the MPA no current statistics are available but are being developed. What is clear is that the partnership approach is heavily weighted against the MPA in that overall partners are not reciprocating the sharing of space.

10. The AC report identified over £ 110m of surplus assets not yet sold. In 2003 the MPA can stand proud in its speedy sale of surplus assets (as reported to GLA) and the only assets held as surplus are as a result of the need to take action to achieve best price on disposal as required by legislation. Clearly London values / prices skew the statistics in this area.

11. The AC report suggests there are overall energy savings available of £ 6m a year. Since 1999 the MPA has achieved a saving of £1.5 m.

The AC report highlights the need for an “asset management approach”. The MPA has approved this approach in BTSC but the delivery is inherently delayed not least because the recent Interim Manager had to give up work on medical grounds. A replacement is taking time to recruit (see Finance report of 9 June 2003).

13. The AC Report questions the traditional role of the police estate. BTSC addresses this head on and is fully supported across the service.

14. The AC report provides illustrative examples of out of place location of police buildings (page 3). There is nothing wrong with this but in London terms it misses the issues of scale, in the Metropolis, and the resulting costs of addressing the issues. It also fails to consider costs / funding and the availability of sites in high-density urban areas. These are real challenges in the MPA.

15. On Police Contact with the public the AC report identifies the aspirational shift, which is shared by the MPA, but does not address the funding and cost issues, or indeed the delivery time, at all. BTSC seeks to be honest and open about this aspect.

16. The AC report identifies the need to match the estate with operational policing demands. BTSC mirrors this in an MPA context. Unfortunately the AC report fails to address the time frame mismatch between policing needs changes and the longer time frame of property delivery in a major city – BTSC does. In addition the AC report is considered simplistic when compared to the emerging asset management policy of the MPA.

17. In Asset Management detail the AC report focussed upon:

  1. Poor use of space
  2. Failure to rationalise
  3. Variation in running costs
  4. Inadequate management information
  5. Deteriorating physical condition

18. It is interesting to note that there is no test of the financial adequacies.

19. In the MPA it is suggested that the BTSC strategy deals with all these issues and goes much further – change costs and finding financial solutions, when capital is inadequate and being cut, are the key management issues.

20. On the same theme the AC report suggests a 20 year time frame, leasing rather than owning etc. All these are live issues in BTSC but in London terms we need to look at a 35 year time frame minimum. There are also accounting issues (e.g. Prudential Code) to now consider.

21. It is also interesting that the AC report omits reference to legislation impacts around DDA and equal opportunities.

Audit Commission recommendations

22. On page 6 of Action Stations the AC makes specific recommendations for all authorities. The following table repeats theses and suggests an MPA response, in light of the impending HMIC inspection, and for agreement by members:

AC Action Stations recommendation MPA response 2003
1. Prepare a property strategy and review it regularly. Strengthen links between operational and property strategies.
  • “Building Towards the Safest City” approved June 2003, which exceeds the aspirations.
2. Rationalise operational and residential stock.
  • Done but will take time to execute. MPA challenging lack of capital funding to achieve operational aspiration in AC report.
3. Assess the most suitable locations for public contact points; seek the views of local people on how they would prefer to access police services.
  • In hand via BOCUs but the AC report fails to address funding and the falling level of capital allocations (when compared to the AC established need for backlog investment) and the sheer scale and cost of provision required in London. BTSC addresses.
4. Improve partnership working and seek opportunities to share buildings and facilities with other forces and other public agencies.
  • All in delivery stage but cost is predominantly falling on the MPA. The MPA needs to see other agencies bearing their share of the partnership “burden”. MPA presence in other agencies estate currently negligible.
5. Undertake regular reviews of space utilisation to maximise the use of available space; explore innovative ways of using space.
  • Reviews being done but the move to Activity Based Costing (ABC) will need major property IT investment in the MPA. Innovative space utilisation plans included in BTSC but funding limited.
6. Establish and maintain a comprehensive and integrated property database.
  • The need for this has increased since the AC report in 1999 (ABC, asset management etc.) However in terms of the MPA estate this is an expensive item, particularly when it needs to cope with “devolution” policies (unmentioned in the AC Report).
  • The MPA is considering this need and the requirement is fully specified. Budget decisions in a tight environment are imminent.
7. Monitor running cost and space utilisation individual buildings and set targets for improvements.
  • In the MPA, with over 600 buildings and 5 PFI locations and a devolved BOCU strategy, this is easier said than done. In addition, most buildings are not occupied by a single user and competition for justifiable, but often competing policing priorities can be costly and difficult to monitor. Strategic data is available but full implementation is dependant on new IT where budgets are uncertain.
  • The MPA approach is not "by building" but "by user / OCU "due to the sharing of individual buildings.
8. Introduce or strengthen financial incentives for budget holders to use space more efficiently.
  • In some respects the devolution of budgets, primarily to policing units, is incompatible with a corporate property strategy. In mixed-use buildings the recommendation could build a culture of “robbing Peter to pay Paul”. The MPS believes in creating a balanced culture that reflects the underlying fact that property is a long-term investment and requires both central and devolved input. BTSC covers this.
9. Review the arrangements for providing or purchasing estate services so as to ensure best value. Introduce written contracts where there are currently none.
  • The MPA totally endorses this approach and seeks to go further by addressing total cost in use and flexibility of the estate to meet policing priority shifts.
  • Contracts are best suited to external arrangements and have to be flexible to meet policing imperatives, which are subject to variation incompatible with estate investment cycles. The MPA does not believe internal occupier SLAs are desirable (nor compatible with best value) given the intrinsic timing mismatch between the property investment cycle and policing flexibility needs (short and medium term). Instead the MPA, through the BTSC, approach believes a balanced approach more relevant to the scale of policing in London.
  • In addition best value has to be fundable. Regrettably current funding levels work against this and the MPA is working (see BTSC) to address the funding gap that the AC report fails to address.

Conclusion

23. The MPA is ahead of the report's recommendations but has problems as a consequence of the sheer scale of the London need. The AC report is helpful but it lacks a funding / affordability context which is unfortunate and fails to reflect the impact of legislation on the estate.

C. Equality and diversity implications

There are no specific issues arising from this report.

D. Financial implications

None of a direct nature but investment needs for buildings and systems are in hand through the Resources Workstream.

E. Background papers

F. Contact details

For more information contact:

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

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