Complaints management information

Report: 5
Date: 10 November 2005
By: Commissioner

Summary

This report includes data for the 12 months to September 2005. It focuses on the key changes or exceptions within the data, as trends are slow to change. Appendix 1 includes graphs illustrating the trends.

Workload

There has been an increase of 17% in the number of public complaint allegations being recorded over the past 12 months from a monthly average of 395 to 464.

There has been an increase of 5% in the number of conduct matter allegations recorded over the same period from 78 to 84.

Timeliness

The average number of days to complete a full public complaint investigation remains well below the target of 120-days. It reduced by 26% from 125 days in October 2004 to 93 in September 2005.

The average number of days to complete an investigation into a conduct matter continues to improve and it remains below the target of 120-days. It reduced by 55%, from 191 days in October 2004 to 85 in September 2005.

The average number of days between the decision to hold a misconduct hearing and the hearing itself is considerably below the target of 120-days. It reduced by 44% from 132 days in October 2004 to 87 in September 2005.

A. Recommendations

That Members note the report and the illustration of trends in Appendix 1.

B. Supporting information

1. Appendix 1 graphically illustrates some of the key trends using data drawn from Appendix 2.

2. The summary of Directorate of Professional Standards (DPS) performance indicators is attached at Appendix 2 and focuses on timeliness, quality and outcomes of investigations.

3. The diversity information is attached at Appendix 3.

Key Performance Indicators

Public Complaints – Chart 1 Appendix 1 and row 1 and 2 Appendix 2

4. This shows a gradual rising trend in the 12-month rolling average of the number of allegations recorded since October 2004 with a plateau noted between June and September 2005.

5. There has been an increase of 17% in the number of public complaint allegations being recorded over the past 12 months from a monthly average of 395 to 464.

6. The reasons for the increase in complaints are primarily centred around the introduction of the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) which has seen:

• A widening of the definition of who can complain i.e. Directly Affected, Adversely Affected, Witnesses and Representatives.
• An increase in who people can complain about - in addition to Police Officers now Police Staff, Special Constables and some types of Contracted Staff i.e. Detention Officers and Escort Officers
• Increased accessibility to the complaints system. People can make complaints through e.g. IPCC themselves, Citizens Advice Bureaus, Outreach Services. Furthermore, and within the MPS, the DPS Reserve Desk has been introduced to take calls directly from the public.

7. Additionally, the ‘Pro-Hunt’ demonstration in September 2004 saw an additional 415 allegations recorded, which represents the approximate equivalent of an extra month-worth of allegations. This was an unprecedented number of allegations related to a single incident. However, as this incident drops out of the year in focus, a larger monthly variation in the ‘percentage change from the previous rolling 12-months’ is evident – 21% down to 17%, Row 2 Appendix 2

8. The number of ‘live’ public complaint cases under investigation at row 13 Appendix 2 shows that overall the number of cases under investigation has increased significantly from 485 in October 2004 to 729 in September 2005.

Public Complaints Finalised – Charts 3 and 4 Appendix 1 and rows 5 to 11 Appendix 2

9. An increase in the percentage of allegations that are resulted as ‘Not Recorded’ (NR) at row 11 Appendix 2 has been apparent since the IPCC’s inception. In the four years leading up to the IPCC an average of 3% of all allegations were recorded as NR but more recently, this has risen to a high of 12% between February and April 2005 but which has since declined to 9% in September 2005.

10. Allegations termed as NR are in fact recorded on the complaints system. NR is used where the allegation(s) do not relate directly to the conduct of a member of the police service. As such, they are allegations that are ‘not recorded’ under the Police Reform Act.

11. These NR allegations often relate to a quality of service or direction and control issues and although they are not recorded as public complaints they are often forwarded to the Borough or Business Group concerned to action directly with the complainant.

12. Furthermore, the complainant has a right of appeal to the IPCC against the decision of the MPS not to record the issue(s) as a complaint under the Police Reform Act. Since April 2004, the MPS have recorded 74 such appeals.

13. Chart 4, Appendix 1, shows there has been a 3% reduction in the percentage of allegations being Locally Resolved, using a 12-month rolling average.

14. Dispensations have also fallen considerably from 26% to 17% of the total.

15. The main, corresponding, increase has been in the percentage of unsubstantiated allegations, from 13% of the total to 21%.

Substantiated Allegations as a percentage of Allegations Fully/Proportionately Investigated – row 12 Appendix 2

16. Over the current period, there has been a reduction in the percentage of fully investigated allegations that are substantiated from 17% in October 2004 to 10% in September 2005. This is due to the aforementioned increase in the percentage of unsubstantiated allegations over the same period.

CPS Decisions - Appendix 1 Chart 7 and row 32 Appendix 2

17. The improvement previously noted in the average time for the CPS to reach a decision has not been sustained. Since its lowest point in the 12-month rolling average, December 2004 (113 days), it has risen slightly to 119 days in September 2005.

18. In December 2005, all CPS decisions will be made by their Ludgate Hill office. It is hoped that this will improve both the timeliness and consistency of the decisions.

IPCC Decisions - Appendix 1 Chart 8 and rows 35 to 37 Appendix 2

19. The MPS has met with the IPCC to discuss the respective sets of figures relating to the timeliness of the Commission’s decision making.

20. Work continues to establish a common understanding thus, until this reached, the figures have been removed from Appendix 1 and 2.

21. We will establish a set of common counting rules and conduct a quality assurance exercise to review each case individually to insure that all appropriate cases are counted.

22. The IPCC have been provided with our calculations and full case list and we are due to meet again in late October early November 2005 to resolve the issue. Once an agreement has been reached it is anticipated that the IPCC timeliness figures will be reinstated to Appendix 1 and 2 in time for the next PSCC.

Complaints and Discipline System (CDS)

23. Members will be aware that the DPS continues to invest considerable time in developing a replacement to existing CDS system, which is now over 10 years old.

24. TRIBUNE, the replacement, is on schedule to be commissioned in late December 2005 early January 2006 with the view to it remaining in service within Professional Standards for at least a further 5 years.

25. TRIBUNE has a number of significant benefits. These are:

1. It allows for electronic transfer of data to the IPCC
2. Meets the IPCC requirements to ‘flag’ multiple factors within allegations for example; alcohol, drugs, police dogs & horses and mental health etc.
3. Increased citizen focus by providing the facility to generate letters to complainants and subjects using data pre-entered on the system at the prescribed intervals.
4. Incorporates Police Staff data taken directly from the MPS Human Resources System, MetHR, as is the case with Police Officers.
5. Facility to record extraordinary or exceptional costs to an investigation such as forensic costs, court transcripts and travel costs etc.
6. Graphical representation of the composition of each case to show visually the complainants, subjects, allegations and the relationship between these elements.
7. Improved IPCC Appeals data capture to include timeliness and outcome
8. Improved IPCC Investigation Type data to include referrals and decisions regarding Local, Supervised, Managed and Independent cases.
9. Improved tool to extract data from the system – BI Query
10. Improved investigation time ‘clock’ to better allow for the decision-making timescales and the requirement to reopen previously completed cases.
11. The capability to be accessed by legitimate users outside of DPS such as local Borough/Business Group based professional standards champions.
12. New Hardware and integration with the faster corporate network.

26. If members would like to see TRIBUNE they are welcome to visit DPS following installation or alternatively and a demonstration of the key elements of the system could be arranged at a future PSCC.

Public complaints and conduct matters – North-West region

27. For the purposes of this meeting the MPA has produced an analysis of public complaints and conduct matters for the North-West region (Appendix 4). However, for future meetings this information should be provided by the MPS in consultation with the MPA.

C. Race and equality impact

1. Members questioned the rise in the number of ‘unknown’ complainants since April 2004. This has been caused by two factors.

2. Firstly, the recording of the different types of ‘complainant’ allowed for under the Police Reform Act. For example, if a witness makes a complaint their ethnicity and gender will be entered on the system and an additional, skeleton record, will be added to record the ‘unknown’ person who was directly affected but their ethnicity and gender may remain unknown until later in the investigation if it is established at all.

3. Secondly, there is a reduction in the number of complainants who complain in person. Many now prefer to do so via the IPCC, DPS Reserve Desk or by letter/e-mail. Thus, in the initial stages at least their ethnicity and gender may be unknown.

4. The following steps have been taken to ensure better data capture in the future:

1. DPS Investigating Officers (IO) will liase with their contacts, within Boroughs and Business Groups, to ensure improved data capture at source.
2. DPS IOs will ensure that where a complainant’s ethnicity and gender are subsequently captured during the investigation that this is input to the system.
3. The DPS reserve desk will ensure complainants are asked for their ethnicity and gender when telephone contact is made
4. DPS will request that IPCC Commissioners ensure that the ethnicity etc. of complainants contacting the Commission is captured and forwarded to DPS along with other details.

D. Financial implications

The overall cost of the TRIBUNE system to the MPS is £192k. This is split between the Directorate of Professional Standards, who have found £90k from within existing budgets and the Directorate of Information who will pay the balance of £102k. The latter is apportioned between the Service Delivery Group (£30k) and Information Program Group (£72k).

E. Background papers

None.

F. Contact details

Report author(s): Michael Clark, Higher Performance Analyst
Carl Bussey, Detective Chief Superintendent

For more information contact:

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

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