Agenda item

To consider the Police and Crime Plan quarterly progress update.

The six People’s Priorities are:

·         Take a zero tolerance policing approach

·         More visible street policing

·         Put victims at the centre of the Criminal Justice System

·         Give you the opportunity to have a greater say in how your streets are policed

·         Protect your local policing

·         Be uncompromising in the standards you expect from your Police

The Chairman explained that the Surrey Police and Crime Panel had agreed to monitor progress against the Commissioner’s Police and Crime Plan at every meeting, and that the report in the agenda provided an update for  the period April 2013 to June 2013.

The Chairman invited the Commissioner to give a brief introduction to the quarterly progress update of his Police and Crime Plan, and he made the following key points:

·         The Commissioner stated he was holding the Chief Constable to account on his six Peoples Priorities.

·         The Commissioner did not feel that the current content of reports from the Chief Constable enabled him to hold the Deputy Chief Constable to account and he was in discussion as to how to improve them.

·         The Commissioner wanted to see more relationships built and processes developed as they would assist in prosecuting those who deal drugs.

·         The Commissioner wanted to see greater clarity on the work which had been done by Surrey Police to seize proceeds of crime.

The Chairman thanked the Commissioner for his overview and invited questions from Panel Members. During the following question and answer session the following points were clarified:

·         Members raised concerns that  Anti-Social Behaviour was not included in the performance update as it is one of the six Peoples Priorities, and requested further information on how this was being dealt with. Concerns were additionally raised with the rise in crime and decrease in detection and resolution rates, along with the number of people being charged with drug offences decreasing. The Commissioner agreed that detection rates and drug offence charges were of serious concern and stated that there was no room for complacency.

·         The Commissioner stated that the Chief Constable was in the process putting senior officers back into local offices and it was hoped that this would assist in improving the figures in the progress report.

·         Panel Members expressed concern that there were differences in approach when dealing with traveller incursions, and suggested that a consistent approach across Surrey was necessary. The Commissioner confirmed the Chief Constable was relentless in pursing Anti-Social Behaviour and bad performing officers. He hoped that moving senior officers back into local teams would assist with achieving consistency of approach. The Commissioner stated that building partnerships between council officers and Borough Inspectors would be very important.

·         The Panel queried whether all instances of Anti-Social Behaviour, including cycling on foot paths, would be pursued by officers. The Commissioner raised concern that not all officers understood what a zero tolerance approach entailed, but that he was satisfied that the Chief Constable was communicating with her officers that this was the approach to be taken by Surrey Police. He stated that Police Officers needed support to influence behaviours and make the public believe that no act of Anti-Social Behaviour was too small for the Police to pursue.

·         Members raised concerns regarding the state of Local Policing Boards as some were not aware they were set up in their District and Boroughs. The Commissioner agreed that there had been problems setting up a Local Policing Board in Tandridge in particular, but that he had deliberately not been prescriptive regarding the format of these Boards as he felt they should be locally driven. He invited Members of the Panel to join their Local Policing Board to feed into the process, as their local knowledge would assist in the mechanism of feeding up to himself, as the Commissioner, regarding local concerns.

·         The Panel felt a strategic review on community funding was required as the application process was overly burdensome. The Commissioner informed the Panel that he had invited the High Sheriff to join the grants scheme to give it a wider strategic reach.

·         Panel Members queried whether the Commissioner was in the process of trying to toughen the sentencing of those who committed drug offences. The Commissioner stated that he had met with the courts, along with the other South East Police and Crime Commissioners, and had offered Surrey to become a Super Police and Crime Commissioner which would result in greater cohesion with the criminal justice sector.

·         Cycling was raised as a concern of the Panel as it was felt that more needed to be done by the Police to ensure accidents did not continue to rise. The Commissioner agreed that this was an area he was looking into and was in discussion Councillor John Furey, Surrey County Council Cabinet Member for Transport, Highways and Environment.

·         Members requested that complaints be added to the progress report, along with compliments received by Surrey Police to help the Panel assess public opinion.

·         The Commissioner stated that the morale of Surrey Police was a further concern as a recent staff survey had revealed it was lower than expected, and that this was something he was looking into. The Panel requested that the findings of the survey be shared with the Panel.

RESOLVED: That

1.    The details of the number of complaints and compliments received by Surrey Police be included in future performance updates.

2.    The Police and Crime Commissioner’s Office ensure that all Panel Members are made aware, in good time, of Local Policing Boards taking place in their area and that the Independent Members and Chairman are kept informed of all such events.

3.    The headlines of the recent Police staff survey be shared with the Panel.