Agenda item

Members to receive a report updating on current recruitment processes including targets as well as retention and dismissal levels within the police.

The Police and Crime Panel considered a report providing an update on the current recruitment processes, campaigns and outcomes for the recruitment of additional police officers together with an update on retention and dismissals.

1.58pm Councillor Les Phillimore joined the meeting.

It was noted that:

·         There was an obligation to increase police officer numbers with processes in place to ensure that the recruitment targets agreed at the Police and Crime Panel meeting on 27^th January 2021 were achieved as set out in the report.

·         The monitoring of recruitment targets took account of retention and dismissal levels within the police.

·         There was a commitment to also ensure representation of the police force achieved an appropriate demographic balance among its workforce as Leicestershire had a specific demography. In terms of making the force BAME representation equivalent to the rest of population (i.e. around 21%), the ratio was currently around 8.4%, that needed to improve to make the force wholly representative and therefore they had committed towards 1 in 4 new recruits coming from BAME background, achieving this target would take time but current new recruits intake was around 1 in 6.5 from BAME backgrounds.

·         A piece of work had been completed around new interns, with targeted recruitment of new degree holders and building on existing work to improve recruitment.

There followed a discussion around recruitment of additional officers and clarification was sought of the total numbers of extra officers to be recruited over the period 2020-21 and for 2021-22. The Chief Finance Officer explained the complexities of calculating the increased number of officers and the funding mechanisms. It was noted there were two main drivers for officer recruitment, firstly, a specified number of additional police officer posts that the PCC has agreed to in his budget with the panel, e.g. for 2020/21 budget that was 100. Secondly, the national programme “Operation Uplift” to recruit 20,000 police officers across England and Wales, Leicestershire’s target for 2020/21 was 89. The establishment figure at the start of the financial year plus the in-year recruitment targets for PCC and Operation Uplift recruitment combined, defined the end of year target. It was confirmed that the total target 2020/21 was on track to be achieved.

In terms of Operation Uplift, the national figure of 20,000 police officers across England and Wales was broken down into specific recruitment targets for each individual police service over 3 years and was heavily scrutinised to ensure national targets were met to ensure funding received. It was confirmed that Leicestershire’s target for 2020/21 of 89 was absolutely on target to be achieved.

It was noted that funding for the additional officers through Operation Uplift came from the home office who provided grant funding in full the following year when the target was achieved so the burden of cost of salary wouldn’t fall to council taxpayers. Once the additional numbers are recruited they are then included in the overall establishment figure for the next financial year. For next financial year there are plans to recruit a further 88 police officers and if target achieved that will attract right of grant.

RESOLVED:

That the panel notes the contents of the report and approves the proposed future monitoring arrangements.