Violent Crime Directorate – problem solving on identified wards

Report: 8
Date: 8 June 2006
By: Commissioner

Summary

This report sets out the approach being taken by the Violent Crime Directorate to develop sustainable solutions in the wards in London that experience the highest levels of recorded violent crime. The approach involves building cross business group and partnership responses based on well-developed problem profiles.

A. Recommendation

That

1. Members note this report.

B. Supporting information

1. The Violent Crime Directorate (VCD) was launched on 21 March 2006. There are three key areas of work undertaken. The first is responsibility for areas of public protection work - domestic violence; hate crime; rape and sexual offences; the management of dangerous and sex offenders through Multi Agency Public Protection Arrangements; missing persons and the Racial and Violent Crime Task Force.

2. The second strand is to develop and drive a programme of work that engages the MPS in strategic areas that have an impact upon our response to violence. These include criminal justice; diversity and citizen focus; performance; public confidence/perception; prevention and partnership, and violence against women. On 6 June the VCD command team will agree a proposal for the structure and process by which that work will be taken forward.

3. The third strand of work is the creation of a new intelligence and analysis unit that combines existing intelligence assets from various parts of Territorial Policing. It is hoped that during this week a date can be agreed for the various component parts to move into Empress State Building. That move will co-locate the team with the Performance Directorate and enable more effective interchange between the VCD work and the work of Betsy Stanko and others. The unit will be NIM (and FIB) compliant and structured around three ‘nodes’ – dangerous people, dangerous places and victims. The purpose will be to develop problem profiles against which the resources of the MPS will be brought together through the Operations Board in order to use the whole range of capabilities and experience in tackling problems of violence.

4. A key element of the work on ‘dangerous places’ is developing cross-business group responses to areas that suffer the highest levels of reported violent crime. Professor Betsy Stanko and her team have analysed all 624 wards in London to assess the levels of violence in each.

5. On the basis of that analysis, eight of those with the highest prevalence have been selected to develop the new approach. Of those, five have relatively high levels of violence that predominantly revolve around public space violence, usually related to a significant nighttime economy. The other three have been selected because they suffer relatively high levels of gun-enabled crime.

6. The work is being led by the VCD but with a particular involvement from Serious Crime Directorate in the three gun crime areas, where their expertise around prevention and deterrent approaches is of particular value.

7. The process in relation to the five other wards began a number of weeks ago. Staff from the VCD have been supporting the relevant boroughs in developing problem profiles in relation to the wards. Those problem profiles should be based upon the range of intelligence and information available, not just on reported crime statistics, and will give an insight into the nature of violent offending within that ward.

8. The next stage takes place on 16 June, when each of the relevant boroughs has been invited to present their problem profiles to Commander Allen. Also present will be colleagues from Serious Crimes Directorate (SCD), Central Operations (CO), Safer Neighbourhoods (SN), the Performance Directorate and the VCD.

9. Problem Profiles will be shared and the learning from the process identified. There will then be a discussion about the kind of tactical options that might be brought to bear in resolving the problems, located around offenders, locations and victims. The intention is to put together packages of response that use the most appropriate resources to deliver long term solutions.

10. A critical element of this work is the contribution of partners. The strategic objective is to police the problems out but to ensure that the long-term interventions are put in place alongside policing solutions that will ensure sustainability. This will inevitably involve CDRPs but also residents, the licensing trade, local business, the voluntary sector and a range of other partners.

11. There are, of course, many examples of successful partnership work, not least current initiatives in relation to licensed premises. The purpose of this work is to ensure that those contributions are maximised and that the learning from success is transferred.

12. The work on the three gun crime areas is being developed at present through the prevention and partnership strand, with SCD taking the lead. The process for agreeing intervention packages will mirror that above – sharing of problem profiles and inter-business group discussion about appropriate solutions.

13. Alongside developing intervention strategies, an evaluation framework will be put in place. The detail of that framework may vary from ward to ward depending on the nature of the problem profile. However, there will be core elements that will obviously include levels of violent crime. It is also important to capture a measure of confidence, a process in which the Safer Neighbourhood teams will play an important role.

14. The initial selection of wards will enable us to refine the process that can then be extended to others. It is not yet clear how many areas the MPS can work on in this way concurrently but there will undoubtedly be learning that is applicable in the wider context of neighbourhood policing.

List of abbreviations

CO

Central Operations

FIB

Force Intelligence Bureau

NIM

National Intelligence Model

SN

Safer Neighbourhoods

VCD

Violent Crime Directorate

C. Race and equality impact

1. By definition, those who live in areas that suffer the highest levels of violent crime are likely to be vulnerable. The wards selected have resident populations representing a wide range of communities and all will benefit from a safer environment.

2. It is important, in developing responses, that regard is taken to the potentially disproportionate delivery of those tactics e.g. stop and search, and that careful scrutiny is given to ensuring the fair and appropriate delivery of service.

3. A Community Impact Assessment will be completed in relation to each intervention plan.

4. A vital factor in delivering appropriate interventions is the involvement of communities and their representatives in the design of those interventions.

D. Financial implications

The approach outlined does not require additional resources. Clearly there are resource costs but these present as opportunity costs. Successful delivery will achieve better outcomes and problems solved rather than suppressed will continue to deliver opportunity cost saving into the future.

E. Background papers

None

F. Contact details

Report author: Steve Allen, MPS

For more information contact:

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

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