Morris Inquiry - recruitment and progression

Report: 6
Date: 15 December 2005
By: Commissioner

Summary

This report covers updates on the following:

• Multi-point entry, including training implications.
• Current and planned development of career pathways, including timescales for new pathways.
• How the Human Resources (HR) Directorate is monitoring and evaluating the workforce profiles of specialist units to ensure they are representative.
• How HR is developing exit survey processes to identify underlying reasons/causes for voluntary resignations and transfers.
• The revised induction processes for police staff.
• How HR policies are reviewed, implemented, monitored and evaluated, particularly those respecting police officer and police staff promotions.
• Appendix 2 highlights the relevant Morris recommendations.

A. Recommendation

That members approve the report.

B. Supporting information

Multi-point entry

1. The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) is undertaking research around police staff performing the role of Investigative Support Officers, including an assessment of the success of the Bexley Borough Pilot project. The evaluation will take into account the fact that the current officers are all ex-police officers, which may affect the findings. This information will be shared with the Career Management Unit to ensure up to date information is available on building career pathways. This is one area where multi-point entry could be feasible.

2. Multi-point entry for investigators is being examined by the Detective Modernisation and Workforce Modernisation Programme Boards. When research is concluded, recommendations will then be made on its desirability.

Career pathways

3. In consultation with the Crime Academy, HR has undertaken work in relation to the Detective Career Pathways. Early models have been presented and additional developments agreed with the Crime Academy. The current product was presented to the Detective Modernisation Programme Board on 16 November, at which there was a general agreement on the content and style of the product. The current product shows, in summary, the most common pathways, entry requirements, training and development offered, accreditation requirements and further progression options. This now needs to be finalised to link in with Crime Academy training and other emerging work such as ‘The Definition of a Detective’ and the Professionalising Investigation Process Programme (PIP).

4. The Intelligence and Analyst career pathways are in the research stage. Focus groups are being held in November and December to facilitate scoping of the content and depiction of the pathways.

5. The early models (work in progress versions) of Detective, Analyst and Intelligence pathways are live on the intranet and improvements and information will be added as research is gathered.

6. A senior HR Manager has been seconded from the Home Office to lead on the career pathways work for the volume uniformed roles (including PCSOs/Traffic PCSOs). Qualitative research, which includes a race and diversity dimension, is currently being undertaken. This involves confidential interviews with a range of police officers and PCSOs. This stage of the process is planned to be finished by the end of January. Interviews with relevant senior managers continue into January. A presentation will be made to HR Board in March 2006. A review of the content of each pathway, and on the most user-friendly way to depict them on the intranet, will be undertaken during the next four months to incorporate the research gathered for these roles.

7. In order to move forward the corporate vision of HR and the impact that HR Service Centres and Service Review will have on the HR career pathway, a meeting was held in mid-November with the Director of HR Services. Preliminary research will commence in January 2006.

8. Resources Directorate (for catering staff) and Forensic Services Directorate are both currently scoping career pathways. The HR Directorate Career Management Unit has contact with these projects, and the products will be linked to the corporate pathways work.

Diversity monitoring of specialist units - gender and ethnicity

9. The MPS continues to monitor the impact of policies, strategies and processes on a number of strands of diversity, and to undertake further investigation and remedial action in response to any situations where disproportionality is identified. The primary reports where this activity is reported, and which are available to the public, are:

• Monthly HR Headline Scorecard
• Monthly Workforce Data Report, which includes some historical data.
• Annual Race in Employment Report, which focuses specifically on ethnic monitoring across all the Race Relations (Amendment) Act Employment Duty items.

10. Tables 1 and 2 in Appendix 1 show that there is disparity across the MPS in specialist groups in respect to staff membership, for example within SO there is gender under representation for both police officers and staff by comparison to the other departments. This is to be expected given that some of the skills and competencies required for specialist units may only be found in officers with longer service in the MPS and who have therefore had the opportunity to gain the required skills. For example, 59% of females working in TP have between 0-4 years of service compared to just 3% of those in SO; Moreover, just 9% of females working in TP have between 15-19 years of service compared to 31% of females working in SO, which highlights the importance of SO staff possessing in-depth knowledge and experience.

11. In the next few years, it is anticipated that the profile of these specialist units should change given the numbers of black and minority ethnic staff who have been recruited in recent years. Further analysis will continue to be carried out through the processes established for that purpose. If necessary action will then be targeted as, appropriate.

12. In order to support black and minority ethnic candidates through the application process, the MPS Careers Team has:

• Improved and targeted sessions to provide support and practical advice about the Competency Based Questionnaire, which is part of the National Recruitment Standards (NRS) process;
• Improved and targeted sessions to provide support and practical advice to accepted applicants about first day processes at Hendon;
• Developed Access Courses, run at four different educational institutions, to help those who have English as an additional language develop the skills they will need to become successful MPS applicants.

13. Other support initiatives include:

• Personal Leadership Programme, which is targeted at black and minority ethnic police officers (constable to inspector rank) and police staff (band G to C equivalents);
• Buddy programme for probationers;
• Support programme for black and minority ethnic officers with up to five years service;
• Active Career Development Programme which consists of six monthly seminar events;
• High Potential Development Scheme;
• Female and Ethnic Minority Detective Programme;
• Intensive Development Programme for Police Staff.

Disability

14. The MPS has reviewed and is currently revising its business processes to capture the changes resulting from the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA). Accordingly, arrangements are now in place to record disabilities, with a focus upon instances where reasonable adjustments may be required. Guidance is available to local HR managers on the criteria to be applied when recording disability on employment records. Monitoring of disability data, as well as other dimensions of diversity, will be facilitated in the future through the self-service functionality on MetHR. Comprehensive monitoring, however, will not be possible until after the basic self-service functionality has been rolled out across the MPS and all staff can access their records. Nevertheless, in terms of new staff and the recruitment process, disability data is recorded on MetHR and is available for analysis.

Exit survey

15. The new exit survey is fully operational. Two full time members of staff have been trained and either a telephone or a one-to-one interview is provided to all early voluntary leavers. Staff who retire are offered the service via a questionnaire, but they can request a one-to-one interview. The pilot process showed that the main reasons for leaving were:

• Life choices
• Career development
• Management issues.

16. The new process is still in its early stages. In the first month, forty-five questionnaires were received and twenty-five one-to-one interviews were undertaken. Two specific areas have been identified which have led to information about management style or actions being passed to the relevant OCU.

Corporate induction

17. Corporate induction comprises an induction day, a multi media information package, an induction pack and a checklist for line managers. The induction provides new staff with valuable information about the MPS and their role. Areas covered include, strategic objectives, stakeholders, funding, achievements and challenges. The second session covers what the MPS offers in terms of benefits, union membership, development and career enhancement but also the individual’s responsibilities in relation to diversity, health and safety, Data Protection and Freedom of Information. Now corporate processes are working effectively, the next step is to increase the emphasis on local induction to ensure new staff get more detailed information and support for their actual role.

Promotion policy

18. In line with prevailing good practice corporate policy review and monitoring processes, arrangements for reviewing the diversity impacts of police officer promotion processes are in place and working well. Monitoring activity takes place following the completion of each process, and learning is incorporated into the next process. The police officer promotions policy has recently been updated, following the corporate policy process that includes full impact assessment and consultation. New proposals for police officer promotion are currently being developed in consultation with staff associations. We are working to reduce bureaucracy through strengthening links between promotion and the PDR process. This will provide a more consistent flow of selected officers to workforce planning and, through the use of assessment centres and recognised good practice, further improve the selection of the best officers for the rank.

19. There is no promotion process as such in place for police staff, and all movement of police staff from one role to another (whether it be on level transfer or to a different pay band) is governed by the ‘Guide to Internal Selection’ policy, which has recently been updated in line with the corporate policy review process. Diversity monitoring arrangements are in hand, and are fully compliant with corporate standards and requirements.

C. Race and equality impact

All equality and diversity issues are dealt with in the report. The prime issue highlighted regards the ethnic disparity observed in regards to vetting clearance times.

D. Financial implications

Financial analysis was undertaken to ascertain whether there would be any implications and no significant implications were found. Any that were to arise would be absorbed through normal business as usual processes.

E. Background papers

None

F. Contact details

Report author: Simon Marshall, Director of Recruitment and Paul Madge, A/Director of People Services

For more information contact:

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

Appendix 1

Table 1: Specialist units ethnic breakdown

Source: Workforce data

Table 2: Specialist units gender breakdown

Source: Workforce data

Appendix 2

Relevant Morris inquiry recommendations

17c That the MPS puts in place recruitment processes which are transparent and provide for equality of opportunity. These processes must ensure that people of the right calibre are recruited to posts within the Directorate of Professional Standards and must be extended to all ranks including the most senior positions.

28 That the MPS gives consideration to early implementation of any proposed scheme of multi-point entry for officers.

31 That the MPS develops procedures for promotion and appointments to specialist posts which are fair and transparent and that the Human Resources directorate monitors their application.

Send an e-mail linking to this page

Feedback