Operational support police service improvement review – implementation report

Report: 11
Date: 14 July 2005
By: Commissioner

Summary

This report provides the third update on implementation of the 13 recommendations of the Operational Support Policing Service Improvement Review that were approved in December 2003 by the Planning, Performance and Review Committee.

A. Recommendations

That

1. progress in implementing the Operational Support Policing Service Improvement Review; and
2. the responses to the recommendations of Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) Best Value Review Inspection Report be noted.

B. Supporting information

1 .On 11 December 2003, the Planning, Performance and Review Committee (PPRC) approved the recommendations and improvement plan of the Operational Support Policing Service Improvement Review.

2. The Review made 13 recommendations focusing on functions that support the delivery of policing services to the public by Borough Operational Command Units.

3. Commander Broadhurst, who chaired the Review’s Project Board, chairs an Implementation Board overseeing progress towards achieving the recommendations. Chief Superintendent David Morgan (formerly the Service Improvement Review (SIR) Team Leader and now Chief Superintendent, Partnership for the City of Westminster) is the Implementation Manager. The Implementation Board has comprised personnel with particular responsibility for the recommendations. Links have been established with other MPS projects and it has been possible to integrate several recommendations into existing pieces of work.

4. Members will recall that at PPRC in July 2004 and January 2005, they approved that implementation of recommendations 1, 3, 5, 8, 10, and 12 had been completed. Further, that responsibility for recommendations 9 and 11 is transferred to the Human Resources Directorate (HRD) reporting to the Metropolitan Police Authority (MPA) Human Resources Committee.

5. Further progress has been achieved to date as follows:

Recommendation 2 – To provide boroughs with a more efficient and effective method of accessing the most appropriate support unit to assist with incidents and also to provide a source of advice and information through the establishment of a 24/7 joint central gateway for Territorial Policing (TP) and SCD.

6. Members may recall that the recommendation was designed to address the difficulties experienced by boroughs when they needed to identify the appropriate support unit within Specialist Crime Directorate (SCD). The SCD Central Reserve is now well established and actively assists boroughs to obtain immediate advice and support.

7. Central Operations Directorate are at present developing the project plan for a Central Operations Reserve that will co-ordinate Central Operations (CO), TP, Specialist Crime and Specialist Operations resources. It is anticipated that the design process will be completed by September 2005 with implementation following thereafter.

Recommendation 4 – To improve the consistency and coordination of policing on boroughs by implementing a protocol to ensure the Integrated Borough Operations Office is informed of operational support units operating proactively in their area, unless to do so would compromise that, or future operations.

8. A protocol was developed following a workshop attended by representatives from SCD, Special Branch, Anti-Terrorist Branch and TP that will inform boroughs when executive action, e.g. the arrest of suspects, is planned. The MPS Patrol and Response Strategic Committee approved the protocol on 3 June 2005. It will be published initially as a Police Notice and then become a Standard Operating Procedure. Members will be updated about its implementation at the next review in January 2006.

Recommendation 6 – To raise community awareness about the use of operational support resources by borough commanders through their local media, local consultative group meetings and other channels of communication.

9. The Directorate of Public Affairs (DPA) has produced and distributed a booklet raising awareness about operational support units to London opinion formers and boroughs for them to dispense locally. Work continues with the DPA to identify appropriate methods of consistently sustaining community awareness about the use of operational support resources.

10. In addition, Specialist Crime Directorate has given presentations to Community Police Consultative Groups and other bodies to raise awareness about its work in boroughs.

11. The Together Programme is now seeking to promote the MPS in a more unified way reflecting the totality of response to a broadening policing mission. A communications programme is being developed to progress the initiative.

12. Members will be updated about progress at the next review in January 2006.

Recommendation 7 – To measure activities and outcomes of operational support units in the most effective and efficient way in order to improve performance management and to influence decision making about their staffing requirements.

13. The Review identified different approaches being taken by MPS units to link their activities and the use of resources to the outcomes of operations.

14. To achieve the recommendation, Internal Consultancy Group (ICG) was commissioned to evaluate the different systems being used within the MPS. The aim was not to find the ‘best’ system, as the units perform very different functions. Instead, there were three main areas of focus:

• Determining which information is the most useful for managers (both at a local level and to inform resource decisions for operational support units).
• Recommending approaches that other operational support units might use for activity recording; and
• Establishing how MetTime could be rolled out to other operational support units.

15. ICG found that a variety of approaches were being taken but that one key initiative had stalled. Unfortunately, the activity logger that is part of the MetDuties system proved very difficult to use and, as a consequence, its planned trial within Serious and Organised Crime Group (SCD 7) was not implemented.

16. MetTime is superseding MetDuties. This new system does not, however, have an activity logger as part of its current project plan. An immediate technological solution is not therefore at hand.

17. Work is now in train to identify an alternative method of achieving the recommendation. Members will be informed about the conclusions of this work at the next review in January 2006.

Recommendation 13 – To evaluate the effectiveness of the SCD7/Her Majesty’s Customs and Excise (HMCE) initiative in disrupting the availability of Class A drugs at the point of supply in boroughs.

18. On 9 November 2004, Operation Middlemarket was officially launched. It is a partnership with City of London Police, HM Customs and Excise and National Criminal Intelligence Service (NCIS) designed to tackle the supply of Class A drugs by organised criminal networks in London.

19. It has been identified that SCD10 (Specialist Crime Intelligence) have been commissioned to assess the impact of Operation Middlemarket. A Project Board is presently considering the report and members will be updated about findings at the next review in January 2006.

20. During the week commencing 29 November 2004, HMIC conducted a best value review inspection of the Operational Support Policing Service Improvement Review.

21. The inspection report was published in April 2005 and concluded that at the time of their inspection the service was ‘good’ and the prospects for improvement as ‘promising’. HMIC commented that there was evidence that the MPA had responded positively to feedback given in relation to previous reviews. Further that the MPA was monitoring and managing the implementation plan and providing significant challenge when required.

22. HMIC recognised three areas of good practice:

• Procedures, processes and methods of operational policing or partnership working or technological solutions that significantly improve efficiency, effectiveness or quality of service.
• Arrangements for the use of an Integrated Communications Platform (ICP) is (as?) a strong critical tool for use within the SIR process.
• The consultation aspect of the review was extremely comprehensive. Consultation covered internal and external stakeholders, making excellent use of community police consultative groups, Independent Advisory Groups (IAGs) and crime and disorder reduction partnerships. Questionnaires were designed and used in an appropriate scientific way, which ensured validity and reliability in both qualitative and quantitative terms

23. HMIC made three recommendations. These together with the suggested response is as follows:

HM Inspector recommends that the MPA secures the full engagement of Management Board within the Best Value Review Programme.

24. The MPA will respond under separate cover.

HM Inspector recommends that Borough Operational Command Units (BOCUs) develop the capacity to collaborate more fully to deal with Level 2 criminality.

25. The importance of developing the capacity to respond more effectively to Level 2 criminality is recognised. This is an issue that is currently being examined as part of the MPS Service Review, which will make recommendations for improving the MPS capability in this area.

HM Inspector recommends that future reviews take advantage of external benchmarking opportunities where appropriate.

26. The contribution that external benchmarking comparisons can make to reviews is acknowledged. This review undertook benchmarking activity with national and international police forces. However, it is recognised that, depending on the topic area, the comparison element of reviews could be further enhanced by pursuing other external benchmarking, for example with the private sector. This is an area that has already been adopted in the current review into security guarding of MPS buildings that has explored a number of private sector comparisons. External comparisons and benchmark will continue to be used on reviews as appropriate.

HM Inspector recommends that future reviews have a financial advisor on the project board engaged to provide relevant expertise in activity-based costing and linking potential savings with efficiency gains.

27. The importance of using sound financial information and taking full advantage of activity-based costing information as part of the review process, and in developing recommendations, is recognised. The governance of future reviews will be revised to ensure there is enhanced financial advice and input to project boards and to the review process.

C. Race and equality impact

Ensuring equality for all, and its implications, was of fundamental importance to this review. The implications for ensuring equality were considered throughout the analysis of each of the four themes.

The impact of the findings and recommendations from the Review were assessed as to how they affected equality for all. In doing so, the review team ensured that the statutory requirements of the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000 were fully met. The Commission for Racial Equality, Greater London Action for the Disabled (GLAD) and GALOP (the lesbian gay and bisexual community safety charity) examined the review’s findings and recommendations. Staff support associations were also consulted.

D. Financial implications

Implementation to date has been achieved within existing resources. Members will be apprised of any significant financial commitment.

E. Background papers

• Management Summary of the Service Improvement Review of Operational Support Policing – previously circulated.
• HMIC Best Value Review Inspection Report dated December 2004.

F. Contact details

Report authors: Chief Superintendent David Morgan, Territorial Policing

For more information contact:

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

Send an e-mail linking to this page

Feedback