Update on implementing bureaucracy task force recommendations

Report: 9
Date: 11 December 2003
By: Commissioner

Summary

This report updates members on the progress of the Bureaucracy Taskforce implementation.

A. Recommendations

That the progress made within the MPS on the Taskforce recommendations be noted.

B. Supporting information

1. This is an exception report. Listed below are the major changes that have occurred since the last update in July 2003. The Bureaucracy Team work to a template, which is constantly being updated. This has not been attached but can be supplied upon request.

National issues

2. HMIC Inspection - The HMIC conducted a review into progress made by the MPS on the police reform proposals. Anti-Bureaucracy received a green rating. The HMIC are now preparing a national baseline assessment. The HMIC asked 5 questions:

• Are you using the ACPO matrix? Yes.
• Is there a lead police authority member for bureaucracy? It is the Chair of the Planning, Performance and Review Committee.
• Who is the police force lead person? DAC Bryan.
• Name top three benefits. Nationally they were ANPR, video identification parades and prisoner processing units. In the MPS the top three were considered to be civilianisation, Bureaucracy Scrutiny Framework and Reducing the Burden of Best Value.
• Any drawbacks? The bureaucracy of the process, pressure on resources and requirement for national action and/or legislation were the main impediments identified. The MPS identified that there was no process for adding new items to the list.

3. Review of the Police Forms Editorial Board – Commissioned by the Police Standards Unit and completed by Symbia. A Report has been submitted to the Home Office who are now considering its contents before publication.

4. Guidance on the review of local forms from the Police Forms Editorial Board - gives guidance on consulting staff on a review of local forms. The MPS are already engaged in staff consultation.

5. Publication of the Police Reform Consultation Paper ‘Building Safer Communities Together’. A major consultation on the future of Police Reform. Primarily aimed at community engagement and local accountability, operational effectiveness and service modernisation. From a bureaucracy standpoint the Home Office are seeking views on what more can be done to ensure that police officers are more visible and accessible.

6. Workforce Modernisation. Aimed at supporting forces in developing an optimum skills mix of police officers and police staff, allowing officer time to be freed up for front line duty. Led by a team within the Home Office Personnel Unit, using the HMIC Inspection of Civilianisation and additional funding of £8 million for 2003/04 for forces to test projects that apply workforce modernisation principles as tools. The funding builds on the £1 million provided last year under the Increased Street Presence Fund to support pilots implementing the new powers for designated staff under the Police Reform Act.

7. Policing Bureaucracy Awards Scheme. Realising that the best ideas often come from front line officers the Home Office and Police Federation have launched this national scheme to encourage officers to come up with ideas and suggestions on how we might beat bureaucracy. Suggestions will then be considered and if accepted will be forwarded to a judging panel for an award in May next year.

8. Police Performance Monitoring. The Police Performance Assessment Framework (PPAF) puts forward ‘front line policing’ as a key indicator. Base line data will be collected this year and the measure included from next year.

MPS issues

9. Publication of a Police Notice on Forms – In July a Police Notice gave details of over 1250 forms which were to be scrapped. The Anti-Bureaucracy team in conjunction with the Forms Unit and Procurement Services are producing a Forms strategy, which will ensure all existing forms are subject to regular review to ensure they are “fit for purpose”.

10. Additional guidance on the Bureaucracy Scrutiny Framework – Issued by the Policing Bureaucracy Steering Group and includes:

• ‘Reducing bureaucracy’ as a standing agenda item on all internal meetings. This is currently being progressed.
• Dedicated telephone line, e-mail and internal postal address to provide clear communication channels for officers to raise bureaucracy issues. The MPS has a dedicated unit and a website.
• ‘Bottom up, top down’ organisational effort to improve efficiency. Bottom up is being progressed through focus groups in all BCUs of all ranks and grades. BCU Quality Assurance officers will facilitate this. Top down is being progressed through plans to engage BCU SMTs through presentations to borough commanders.
• Use of suggestion scheme to reward improvement suggestions. Management Board of 3/9/03 requested DAC Bryan to circulate a paper on the service suggestion scheme at the meeting planned for 25/11/03. This is being sponsored by DAC Howlett and conducted by the Internal Consultancy Group. The Anti-Bureaucracy team have made submissions to this review, seeking to place a revised service suggestion scheme within the remit of anti-bureaucracy.
• Passing feedback to officers on suggestions raised. This currently happens and a page has been opened on the website to record this. Examples of current suggestions include electronic payslips and a review of the Special Priority Payments Scheme and the Competency Related Threshold Payments Scheme.
• Establish a bureaucracy working group. The MPS has a permanent anti-bureaucracy team.
• Establish a regular feature in internal force publications. An article appeared in ‘The Job’ in September and more are planned.
• Forces to introduce a checklist of considerations to inform the introduction of new policy and review of existing policy. Through the Policy Clearing House the MPS is currently reviewing all its corporate policies and this is planned for completion by the end of 2004. All new policies are overseen by 17 Strategic Committees and are bureaucracy proofed prior to introduction. Advice has been given to Policy Clearing House by the Anti-Bureaucracy Team on form creation and design and policy development and a close liaison exists between the two departments.

Policing Bureaucracy Implementation Steering Group (PBISG)

11. There have been three meetings of the Policing Bureaucracy Implementation Steering Group (PBISG) since the last update. Points from these meetings are outlined below.

12. Completion of the Fixed Penalty Notice Pilot in Croydon – A year long trial at Croydon to extend the number and use of fixed penalty notices concluded at the end of August 2003, including FPNs for Drunk and Disorderly, minor public order and others. Croydon was one of several national pilot sites. The MPS Final Report has been published. A Home Office national evaluation report is due shortly. Roll out within the MPS is planned for by the end of 2003. 356 tickets were issued in Croydon, 233 for Drunk & Disorderly, the rest for Sec 5 Public Order, drunk and wasting police time. Most were issued in the custody suite. Only 3 persons opted for a court hearing.

13. Crime Reporting – Guidance will be issued by the end of the year on self- reporting on the Internet and direct recording by telephone to a crime bureau.

14. Self-Investigation of retail crime – Guidance on a pilot for forecourt crime in Milton Keynes has been placed on the ACPO Intranet encouraging forces to adopt the self-reporting scheme if it was felt it offered benefits. The MPS has 23,000 crimes a year. The MPS has adopted a one-page sheet, which is phoned through to Telephone Investigation Bureaux and inputted.

15. Administrative detections – The Bureaucracy Taskforce recommended that they should no longer be recorded. The Programme Board following concerns expressed by ACPO, about the overall detection rate having a bearing on public confidence, has put this on hold.

16. Civilianisation – Fieldwork is currently under way on the HMIC Inspection and publication of the report is planned for early spring 2004. The MPS will have a full inspection. The thematic would be looking at ways to reduce bureaucracy for police officers and police staff and the optimum mix of both.

17. Sixteen plus one ethnic monitoring system – Concern has been expressed that the new system has increased the size of stop and search forms and that forces had designed their own form asking for additional information. This is something the Police Forms Editorial Board will investigate.

18. Mobile data – This has been a substantive item at all three meetings. Centring on the ability of Airwave to deliver the requirements of mobile data and the lack of a co-ordinated national response to mobile data. A pilot board is being established to pull together these different strands and to explore what forces are doing on mobile data and whether Airwave can act as the preferred bearer. It is recognised that mobile data is one of the biggest potential success areas for reducing bureaucracy.

19. Ancillary tasks to Local Authorities – An update on passing responsibility for certain tasks to local authorities was given. Completed actions in the MPS include abandoned vehicles, key holders and parking enforcement. The Anti-Social Behaviour and Licensing Acct remove further burdens. Other measures are under active consideration.

Additional items

20. Possession of cannabis – Guidance, to be introduced early in 2004, will presume against arrest for possession of small amounts of cannabis unless there are aggravating factors. There are 23,000 offences for possession of cannabis per annum in the MPS. This will result in considerable savings in police time and bureaucracy.

21. At the Policing Bureaucracy Implementation Steering Committee meeting of 29 October the chair gave an overview of bureaucracy in the policing spectrum at present.

• There is a strengthening resolve by No.10 and the Home Secretary to impact on unnecessary bureaucracy. This will be reflected in the national policing plan 2004-2007.
• The Home Secretary is not confident that the effects of the change proposals are being fully implemented and felt at the front line.
• The Cabinet Office, geared towards front line delivery in the public services, is currently undertaking an Efficiency Review. This will take account of the work of the Policing Bureaucracy Implementation Steering Group and not cut across it.
• The Policing Performance Assessment Framework will include a measure of front line policing.
• IT is central to results realisation.
• There needs to be a baseline assessment of front line visibility and a target to aim for. A baseline assessment is being prepared.
• The Home Office is proposing a central team of police officers and police staff to assist forces in tackling bureaucracy. This is in the process of being formed and is looking at “quick wins” and sharing best practice. The MPS is looking to assist with this. The central team will also check “Diary of a Police Officer” to re-visit causes of bureaucracy for police officers.
• IT – mobile data in particular.
• Forms – A review of the Police Forms Editorial Board, PFEB, has recently been completed and is being studied by the Home Office.
• All the above should be underpinned by a communications strategy.

C. Equality and diversity implications

The work being carried out by the BTF is aimed at encompassing equality and diversity issues, so as to allow a service with the minimum amount of bureaucracy.

D. Financial implications

Where possible savings have been calculated and included within the template, however it has not been possible to calculate all the savings.

E. Background papers

None.

F. Contact details

Report author: Chief Inspector Keith Lunson, DCC2 (2), MPS.

For more information contact:

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

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