Update on Joint Engagement Meetings (JEMS)

11/09
29 June 2009
MPA briefing paper 11/2009

Author: Planning and Perfomance Unit, MPA

This briefing paper has been prepared to inform members and staff. It is not a committee report and no decisions are required.

Purpose of meetings

Joint Engagement Meetings (JEMs) are a mechanism to facilitate joint problem solving work between the police, the council, and other partner agencies at a borough level in order to explore local crime and safety issues.

The meeting identifies long-term, chronic problems on the borough and agrees practical solutions along with identifying potential good practice and pan London issues.

The objective of JEMs is not to hold the borough to account for performance, and the meetings are not intended to replace existing tasking and deployment processes within the borough. Rather they are to focus on developing new solutions to problems, to sit alongside and support existing mechanisms, and to bring together London-wide partners at a borough level.

The process offers considerable potential for wide-ranging service improvement across London. It allows for the identification of potential new work and for a wider dissemination of current good practice across partner agencies.

Initial work with JEMs

Following the initial trial of JEMs the MPA and GLA hosted a conference to explain the process and its benefits to partners from across London. Several additional boroughs expressed an interest in taking part in the process and there have now been ten JEMs to date with another six booked over the next two months. We continue to work to widen participation in the process to all of London’s boroughs, with each being offered the opportunity to take part in a JEM by Christmas 2009.

The data sources identified and analysed as part of the JEMs have allowed partners to look at the current subject of Serious Youth Violence (SYV) from a different perspective, review crime hotspots, crime generators and current tactics and consider whether they are working with each other in the most effective way.

In the main, discussions have been open and frank, with partners fully engaging in the problem solving process, offering ideas and taking on actions.

A number of pan-London issues have been identified, including:

• Problems in sharing Youth Offending Teams (YOTs) intelligence cross border. Suggestion that a pan London database of young offenders and truants is required.
• Further analysis needed on flows of young people and transport requirements related to school routes.
• Cross border co-ordination of response in relation to YOTs and youth courts and the need to review standards and protocols.

Good practice identified includes:

• 'Virtual' licensing board allows members to convene at short notice and respond quickly to licensing issues.
• Leap Confronting Conflict, a national voluntary youth organisation, provided support for friends of young people murdered.
• Setting up a gang symposium that enabled knowledge sharing among partners.
• Family Support Panels being held every six weeks, with all constituent panel meetings being held on the same day in the same location, ensuring a better co-ordination between relevant activities.
• Young and Safe action plan to tackle youth violence.
• Development of systematic processes to tackle cross-border issues with neighbouring borough.
• Cross border activity to track those Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEETs) in the 16-24 age group cross and their engagement with services.

Reviewing the process

Following the completion of the initial JEMs we asked partners who took part for feedback on the process and any details of how it could be improved.

Positive comments received from participants include:

• That the concept of bringing partners around the table, to share the responsibility for solving local problems at a strategic level was worthwhile and that the involvement of the various organisations ensured that there is shared ownership of the agenda.
• That it provided a good arena to debate and explore issues as an extension to local partnership discussions and with additional partners (e.g. Transport for London (TfL) and British Transport Police (BTP)).
• The focus on SYV was topical.
• That it enabled accountability, transparency and tested the robustness of systems.
• Resulting action plans ensure continued improvement in areas under focus.
• The informal nature of the meeting allowed for a full and frank discussion in a non threatening way, especially when areas for improvement were being discussed.
• The meetings are well chaired.
• The slides contain some valuable intelligence and background information and enable an in depth look at the issues of most concern.

The JEM meetings were moved from the TfL Compstat room to the MPA officers after the initial pilot stage and numbers of attendees reduced. It was commented that this enabled a less formal atmosphere and facilitated a ‘real’ as opposed to rehearsed response. However, some still felt that the response remains somewhat rehearsed.

Partners have provided many suggestions for how JEMS can be improved, including:

• The need to plan meetings further in advance so that partners can book dates and so that data can be identified and provided in good time, with all using the same data.
• Identification of new information sources.
• The need for partners to not feel they have to have all the answers to hand or to rehearse the meeting before hand.
• The need to widen the focus of the meetings from just the police.
• The meetings should have fewer attendees and observers.
• Improved clarity regarding the feedback/output of the meeting.
• The need to widen partner participation and engagement.
• Partners, particularly the police, were spending time reproducing data that was provided by the JEMs process. This should be stopped or at least reduced.
• Identifying new ways to resolve cross-border issues, possibly by developing JEMs in line with new MPS link areas.
• Using the JEMs process to capture good practise from the Five Borough’s Alliance, a multi-agency programme to develop long-term, effective solutions to serious violence, including gang-related issues
• Using the JEMs approach to carry out a ‘light touch’ independent review of the issues. This would negate the need for one agency to feel the need to accept responsibility for issues beyond their control as the independent reviewers would be able to identify the responsible areas.
• A more explicit linkage with the Comprehensive Area Assessment (CAA) process.
• A more detailed brief and possible pre-meeting.
• A more inclusive approach to all partners and engagement of other partners.
• A more strategic partnership and problem solving focus with clearer objectives on what was to be achieved at each JEM.
• A summary of agreed actions at the close of the meeting.
• Regular and more frequent meetings to follow up identified issues or problems.
• Provision of more formal and systematic feedback.
• JEMs could also be better utilised within the MPS by feeding into the internal performance management process.
• MPS Borough Strategic Assessments could be incorporated into the data pack.
• There should be more of a focus on partnerships and structures in place for delivery rather than performance.

Progress of development

Comments and suggestions are all being reviewed. Some have already been acted upon.

The initial pilot JEMs took place in TfL's Compstat room. This gave access to the excellent IT facilities but there was some concern that the meetings were too formal and had potential to be seen as confrontational rather than problem solving focused. As a result it was decided to hold the next meetings at the MPA offices at 10 Dean Farrar Street, SW1. Feedback from partners suggests that the more informal venue is well received.

The new layout of the JEMs means that discussions, and therefore, attendees are now more focused on those operating at a strategic rather than operational or tactical level and the numbers attending have been slimmed down considerably. We plan to refine this and assess whether we can further reduce the number of observers attending.

The JEMs have continued to be chaired by Kit Malthouse, vice Chair of the MPA, assisted by the Assistant Commissioner of Territorial Policing and the relevant Local Authority lead (for example, leader of the Council or Chief Executive). The Borough Operational Command Unit (BOCU) commander also attends, as well as other key relevant partners including Transport for London, British Transport Police, London Criminal Justice Board and Youth Justice Board. There are also plans to include other partners in the future. There is of course flexibility about attendees, should key personnel not be available to attend the meeting.

As partners considered the subject area of JEMs to be useful and topical we will continue to offer the SYV theme. However, we are now offering a ‘quality of life’ theme which concentrates on Anti-Social Behaviour, low level crime, and other drivers of public confidence. The Planning and Performance Unit is currently developing the data and analysis to be used in such JEMs. Boroughs with low youth violence figures are being contacted and asked if a ‘quality of life’ theme would be more appropriate.

Current responsibilities

Following a review of resources the MPA is now responsible for overall coordination of JEMs. This includes engagement with Local Authorities, MPS, and other partners as well as the overall follow-up process and development of output from JEMs.

The JEMs slides are produced by the Planning and Performance team. Partner organisations provide additional information. Key contributors include the LASS (London Analyst Support Site) analyst at the GLA, intelligence analysts at the Borough Operational Command Unit (BOCU), the Community Safety Team (Local Authorities), and staff at the London Criminal Justice Board and Transport for London.

The MPA Planning and Performance Unit produces a comprehensive brief on the community safety and partnership issues within a borough for the JEM chair. The Community Safety Team at the GLA contributes information on the political composition of the borough as well as any relevant demographic and population issues and the MPA Engagement and Partnerships Unit (EPU) provides information on current good practice and initiatives along with issues that could affect performance in the borough.

The EPU continue to develop their role in JEMs. As well as contributing to the supporting brief for each meeting, the relevant EPU link officer will engage with Local Authorities and CDRPs on each JEM. They also assist the Planning and Performance Unit to book and schedule in meetings and provide information and advice to the Local Authority.

Actions, good practice, and pan London issues are now recorded and circulated to all attendees by the MPA after the meeting. The MPA will follow up on actions to ensure that the work is taken forward and report back on this in six months time.

The MPA is also developing systems to validate and progress the exchange and wider dissemination of good practice to all partner agencies.

Schedule

A schedule for JEMs is being established that will offer all boroughs the opportunity to take part by the end of the year. Partners are currently being contacted to confirm dates and identify which JEM theme is most appropriate. Pre meetings are being offered to partners to discuss the process, focus and data sets.

The following is the most recent timetable:

These are not public meetings

• 16 June, 3-5pm, MPA room 1, Camden
• 24 June, 11-1pm, MPA room 1, Harrow
• 29 June, 11.30 - 1.30, MPA room 2, Lewisham
• 3 July, 11-1pm, MPA room 1, Havering
• 16 July, 2-4pm, MPA room 2, Hillingdon
• 20 July, 2-4pm, MPA room 1, Newham
• 11 September, 10-12pm, MPA room 1, Hounslow
• 17 September, 2-4pm, MPA room 2, B&D
• 25 September, 11-1pm, MPA room 1, Ealing
• 7 October 2009, 3-5pm, MPA room 1
• 13 October 2009, 3-5pm, MPA room 2
• 16 October 2009, 11-1pm, MPA room 1
• 23 October 2009, 3-5pm, MPA room 1
• 28 October 2009, 12-2pm, MPA room 1, Haringey
• 3 November 2009, 3-5pm, MPA room 1, Wandsworth
• 6 November 2009, 3-5pm, MPA room 1
• 9 November 2009, 1pm - 3pm, MPA room 1, Merton
• 20 November 2009, 2-4pm, MPA room 1
• 25 November 2009, 2-4pm, MPA room 2
• 02 December 2009, 2-4pm, MPA room 1, Waltham Forest
• 11 December 2009, 11-1pm, MPA room 1

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