Agenda and minutes

The Chair welcomed those present and advised this was a virtual meeting, as permitted under Section 78 of the Coronavirus Act 2020 to enable meetings to take place whilst observing social distancing measures and explained the process to be followed.

The Chair also welcomed Simon Whelband as a new member of the panel replacing Micheal Rickman and recognised the contributions made to the panel by Micheal Rickman.

Apologies for absence were recorded for: Keith Culverwell, Kevin Loydall and Ivan Ould.

The minutes of the meeting held on 20^th February 2020 are attached and Members will be asked to confirm they are an accurate record.

RESOLVED:

That the minutes of the meeting held 20^th February 2020 be confirmed as an accurate record.

Members will be asked to declare any interests they have in the business on the agenda.

The Chairman invited members who wished to do so to declare any interest in respect of items on the agenda for the meeting.

There were no declarations of interest.

None received.

There were no public questions submitted.

Members to receive a report providing an update of the performance of the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner for Quarter 4 19/20 (1 January 2020 to 31 March 2020).

The Chair agreed to a change in the running order of the agenda to take this item next.

The Police and Crime Panel considered a report of the Police and Crime Commissioner which provided an update on the performance of the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner for Quarter 4 19/20 (1 January 2020 to 31 March 2020).

The panel noted that:

·         Staff sick absence levels for the quarter were very low and most matters were on track.

·         Performance Development Reviews (PDR) were essentially appraisals and a measure of how staff were being developed. At the current time most PDR’s had been completed and the Annual Report (currently under construction for the next meeting) would provide more information on that.

In Keith Culverwell’s absence he had submitted an email in which he commented that the OPCC Performance Report was informative and it was heartening to read that the staff survey indicated that despite the challenges of home working feedback was positive.

The Chair commented that the performance report provided an interesting and informative overview of where things stood.

RESOLVED:

                        That the contents of the report be noted.

Members to receive a report providing information on Leicestershire Police operational and organisational response and also the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner’s organisational response to the Covid19 pandemic.

The Police and Crime Panel considered a report that provided information on the Leicestershire Police and Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner’s organisational responses to the COVID19 pandemic.

The ensuing discussion included the following points:

·         The OPCC had been supportive of the police work around Covid 19, particularly through the provision of urgent funding and flexibility around normal arrangements, as an example by reviewing arrangements for domestic abuse services and providing around £100k towards additional support for victims during this period.

·         Covid 19 had given rise to working in a much more digital way with remote meetings being held e.g. with the Chair of CPS, faith leaders and youth including the County Youth Council and the City Youth Council.

·         A “What Matters to You” meeting was scheduled to take place to discuss issues that had recently arisen with “Black Lives Matter” organisers.

·         Although the Covid 19 crisis had come about quickly and was extraordinary the Police had responded well and both Police and OPCC were now working towards the recovery phase including an ongoing piece of work via the Tactical Recovery Group to re-establish the night time economy, as generally the night-time economy was resource intensive and the impact of the night-time economy resuming was expected around July.

·         Operationally the pandemic coincided with the launch of a new Target Operating Model that went “live” on 11 March 2020, the model effectively returned many resources to local neighbourhood policing and the panel were assured that the new model seemed to be working well.

·         The partnership response and involvement of the Local Resilience Forum (LRF) was noted as set out in the report. Internally a Gold group structure was established on 3 March 2020 with specific strategic aims and objectives. The Gold group had been meeting regularly and was closely monitoring the impact of the pandemic.

·         It was noted that overall crime levels had dropped however there was a considerable increase in ASB and reports relating to the Covid 19 restrictions with up to 200 reports a day at some points marking the busiest levels in calls since 2011. In terms of criminal justice, a backlog of cases was developing as the Court system could not operate as usual, on the plus side a virtual remand system was now fully in place.

·         Mental Health issues were highlighted, and the panel noted more people were accessing the new route through health services.

·         In terms of staff confidence, PPE and Testing, since the introduction of testing for key workers 21 staff had tested positive, very few requiring hospitalisation and mechanisms to support staff and risk assess were in place.

·         In relation to longer term police resource, it was recognised the population in the county is likely to be greater over the summer months and the police force were looking to maximise the availability of police officers and staff whilst maintaining a work life balance for them and enabling them to take their leave. The new Target Operating model had also  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

Members to receive a report updating on the current recruitment processes, campaigns and outcomes for the recruitment of police officers and the activity

being undertaken on the current Police Officer Degree Apprenticeships application process together with an update on retention and dismissals.

The Police and Crime Panel considered a report providing an update on the current recruitment processes, campaigns and outcomes for the recruitment of police officers and the activity being undertaken on the current Police Officer Degree Apprenticeships application process together with an update on retention and dismissals.

There was a brief discussion on the current make-up of the force, recognising that whilst the force was not representative of the whole community it was progressing in the right direction with recruitment and there were significant numbers of people interested in joining the police. Data was being captured covering all aspects including diversity and where people had chosen to drop out of the recruitment and selection process. It was noted that the approach was towards inclusivity and increasing diversity in the force and continued monitoring taking place through boards.

An overview was given about youth engagement, apprenticeships, mentoring and formal offers and it was noted that workshops had continued to take place during the pandemic. There was also an ongoing piece of work around dealing with unsuccessful applicants that still wanted to join the police.

The ensuing discussion of the report included the following points:

·         The diversity and representation of communities in the County was different to that of the City, however, people that were recruited were generally geographically close as residents and although there was some retention of personal data of applicants it would be difficult to collate that data in terms of a proportional representation of new recruits from the County compared to the City. Officers agreed to explore if such information could be provided to a future meeting.

·         Regarding recruitment of young people, it was noted that a piece of work was underway to help determine the number of recruits coming through the Police Cadet route and how that could be maximised. There was also a trial to allow applicants under 18yrs with Home Office permission, as currently regulations forbid applicants under 18yrs although those regulations were due to be amended.

·         Regarding the current press interest in Black Lives Matter, the police were continuing to engage in a lot of local media work and local radio coverage including in terms of force representation and the steps being taken with a fairer approach to recruitment. It was noted that there were large numbers of applicants for every job advertised and the challenge was about getting the right candidate for the job.

·         Future reports on recruitment, retention and dismissals would also include the number of officers on the “barred” list so that the panel could have oversight of the number of officer resignations before disciplinary action taken.

In summary panel members felt it was commendable that the vital work of recruitment was continuing apace.

RESOLVED:

1.    That Officers explore information available to provide a proportional representation of new recruits from the County compared to the City to a future meeting,

2.      That the contents of the report be noted.

Members to receive a report presenting the draft addendum to the Police and Crime Plan, which also serves as the business plan for the OPCC for approval by the Police and Crime Panel.

The Police and Crime Panel considered a report setting out the principal changes to the Police and Crime Plan in the form of an addendum (the plan) which also serves as the business plan for the OPCC for approval.

The Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) introduced the report and explained how the Covid 19 crisis had led to the postponement of the PCC elections until May 2021 resulting in the current PCC term of office being extended another year.

The panel noted key points that:

·         This plan was intended as an addendum to the original Police and Crime Plan which covered a period until 2021, the extended time period was to maximise continuity and ensure strategic direction was maintained.

·         The addendum was ambitious in its aims and demonstrated commitment to continuing development over the remaining term.

·         The plan would be monitored using existing arrangements although it was dependent on the staffing model for the OPCC.

·         In terms of consultation, due to the current Covid 19 situation there had been limited engagement with communities, but steps were being taken to continue engaging with communities and the refreshed plan had been introduced to partners through the Strategic Partnership Board.

·         The plan had a clear central theme to prevent harm to communities and included short term and long term elements.

·         The approach to prevention was being consolidated and the key element focused on Police services whilst holding the Police to account and ensuring there were arrangements in place to do that.

·         Funds had been committed over the coming year to commission partners and community based organisations to help achieve the Plan. Work would continue to recommission services supporting those subjected to domestic or sexual violence and abuse as well as substance abuse services and funds were being used flexibly, to stimulate local community collaboration works.

·         Communications would continue to be developed both with communities and with all stakeholders.

·         More was being done to analyse and use data effectively to help understand primary causes of harm and to progress adoption of a preventative approach.

·         Steps were being taken towards greater efficiency in Office Management, the Covid 19 crisis had challenged existing working practices, forcing change and accelerating some of the improvements that were needed. Over the coming year executive support work would continue to be developed.

Panel members discussed the report and commented as follow:

·         The collaboration aspects were crucial and panel members were glad that remained central to the plan.

·         Referring to proposals for a new prison in Glen Parva it was noted that Blaby District Council had begun to engage with the local community however building infrastructure arrangements still needed to be progressed and discussion around that was not yet advanced.

·         In relation to political format the Strategic Board was primarily made up of officers and there was talk of introducing political involvement. Panel members welcomed recognition that there was a need to be more proactive in how elected members were involved.

·         In terms of Added Value the OPCC were exploring broadening  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8.

Members to receive a report updating on the 10 knife crime initiatives funded through the specialist knife crime round of the PCC’s Prevention Fund.

The Police and Crime Panel considered a report that provided an update on the 10 knife crime initiatives funded through the PCC  grants programme for projects specifically aimed at reducing knife crime, including the purpose of the crime prevention fund, the level of funding support over a 12 month period to each of the knife crime initiatives and the current status of each project set up to tackle knife crime.

Members of the Panel welcomed the comprehensive report and the Chair thanked officers for their work on this.

RESOLVED:

                        That the contents of the report be noted.

Members to receive a report providing information about the work of the Child Criminal Exploitation (CCE) Strategic Manager.

The Police and Crime Panel considered a report providing an update on the work of the Child Criminal Exploitation (CCE) Strategic Manager.

It was noted that there was an outstanding action for panel members to visit the CCE Hub Wigston however this visit had been overtaken by events of the Covid 19 situation and would therefore be arranged for a future date in due course.

Panel members noted the background information from 2015, including the setting up of the Strategic Partnership Development Fund, the introduction of the Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE) Hub and recognition of the increasing threat of Child Criminal Exploitation (CCE) leading to  the police adopting the same approach they had to CSE and expansion of the hub to tackle the broader CCE and creation of the role of CCE Strategic Manager.

Panel members noted that the police had successfully accessed £137k which would be used towards additional posts in the hub through the SURGE programme.

Officers were thanked for the report.

RESOLVED:

                        That the contents of the report be noted.

The Chair advised that no urgent business had been notified.

The Chair thanked everyone for their involvement in the meeting, noting these were unusual and difficult times and indicated that by the next meeting in July there would hopefully be better arrangements in place although if necessary, the meeting would still be a virtual meeting.

There was a brief discussion around Annual Council meetings of the various local authorities, and it was noted that Monitoring Officers across the County were meeting to discuss the legalities of hybrid meetings.

Lord Bach also extended his thanks to everyone involved in the meeting and the organisational arrangements leading up to today’s meeting.

To note the date of the next meeting on Tuesday 28^th July 2020 at 1pm.

Date of next meeting noted on Tuesday 28^th July 2020 at 1pm.

There being no further business the meeting closed at 3.25pm