Meeting Details

The Panel considered report EPCP/13/16 by the Secretary to the Panel. Following a request from Councillor Mike Mackrory, Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group at Essex County Council, to reconsider the decision not to continue to co-opt a Liberal Democrat onto the Panel, the Chairman had agreed that the Panel would review its decision taken at the last meeting.

The Panel was reminded of the process undertaken to apply to the Home Secretary for an additional co-opted member and expressed some disappointment that the previous appointee had not been able regularly to attend meetings because of other commitments. The Chairman confirmed that a co-opted or independent member was not able to appoint a substitute to attend in his/her place.  It was pointed out that the Liberal Democrats were not the first party in line for consideration for a co-opted member.

It having been moved by Councillor Durcan and seconded by Councillor G Isaacs it was

DECIDED:

That the Panel reaffirm its decision made at the last meeting to take no further action in regard to the Panel’s membership.

The Panel considered report EPCP/14/16 by the Commissioner presenting his draft Police and Crime Plan for 2016 - 2020.

The following points were made during the ensuing discussion.

• The Plan was based on the Commissioner’s election campaign manifesto and had involved extensive consultation with the Chief Constable and his chief officer team, together with other partners and the public.

• Future funding and availability of resources were challenges to the achievement of the Plan.

• The use of workshops to engage with other partners across the voluntary sector had worked well and the Commissioner indicated that he wanted to build on the success of that method of engagement.

• The Commissioner highlighted the key issues that were raised during the engagement phase and any subsequent changes made to the Plan.

• John Gili-Ross and Councillors Guglielmi, Shepherd and Waller were thanked for acting on behalf of the Panel in an advisory capacity in the formation of the Commissioner’s new Police and Crime Plan.

• The Panel discussed the safety of roads and what methods were most effective at reducing traffic speed.  The ‘Surround a Town’ road safety operation had proved particularly successful, and had led to a number of arrests for other offences.  The Panel noted that more Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras were being installed and were proving effective.  Members who had questions in relation to ANPR in their areas should contact Susannah Hancock outside of the meeting and she would link them to the appropriate leads in Essex Police.

• The Plan focused on prevention activities, with a re-balancing of resources and better use of technology.

• The Panel discussed the need to have SMART goals in the Plan, and indicated it would be useful to have detailed comparisons against other police forces, particularly regarding visibility and numbers on patrol.  In response, the Commissioner confirmed that specific performance measures would be included in the delivery plans which would be developed as the next phase of the process and these would be shared with the Panel.

• The Commissioner indicated that the Cambridge Crime Harm Index was being used as an additional method of helping Essex Police review its priorities.

• There was a need to focus on rural crime and the differentiation between domestic and commercial burglaries.  There were plans to deploy specific rural special constables.

• The importance of the use of language in the Plan and the need to emphasise the role of engagement was emphasised.

• The need was stressed to make better use of the means of all means of publicity to promote the good news stories and to help increase police ‘visibility’.

• The Panel expressed concern regarding the 101 non-emergency police telephone service and the difficulties residents were facing trying to access it.  In response to a question the Commissioner agreed that the service needed significant improvement.  He commented that a better online reporting system had been launched in September and it was expected that this would shift the pressure off the telephone service and in turn help that become more efficient.  In response to a question the Commissioner confirmed that the service was funded by Essex Police.  The Commissioner undertook to report back to the Panel on the 101 service and what was being done to make improvements.

• The Panel would welcome more detail on the opportunities being taken for collaborative working.

• The lack of consistent published national re-offending statistics remained an issue of concern.  The Community Rehabilitation Company (CRC) had some useful data which could help Essex benchmark itself, and this was currently being reviewed.

• The possibility of making reference to the Responsible Authority Groups in the Plan was discussed.

• The benefits of using demographics in the Plan process were raised and how they could help focus communication with the hard to reach groups.

• In response to a question the Commissioner anticipated that it would take around 18 months to achieve his aim of doubling the number of special constables in Essex.  He undertook to provide information on the current situation.

It having been proposed by Councillor C Guglielmi and seconded by Councillor G Waller it was

DECIDED:

That the draft Police and Crime Plan 2016 – 2020 be endorsed.

The Panel considered report EPCP/15/16 by Inspector Paul Seabright, Essex Police (presented by Susannah Hancock, Chief Executive) which provided the Panel with an update on the work of Essex Police in relation to anti-social behaviour.  Inspector Seabright was in attendance to deal with questions.

The following points were made during the ensuing discussion.

• The Panel noted the risk assessment process in place and how incidents were triaged and recorded.

• The Panel emphasised the importance of Community Safety Hubs being a key channel to help identify and tackle anti-social behaviour locally.  Cross border hubs appeared to be working well in north Essex, and Members felt that further successes could be achieved from more joined up working across the County’s hubs and whether co-location was appropriate in all cases.

• Panel Members commented on the location and benefits of their local hubs.  Not all of these could be co-located within other public service buildings as some of these were being disposed of.

• The benefits of a multi-agency approach were emphasised whilst recognising the challenges of organisations having different IT technologies.

• The Panel discussed the efficacy of police officers on foot patrol in helping to deter crime.  The Commissioner indicated that officers’ time was being freed up to spend more time on patrol with the introduction of new technology ie new smart phones.  The presence of more local special constables would also increase visibility.

• The Panel shared concerns regarding social landlords and the need for closer working links with them to secure effective action against anti-social behaviour amongst residents.

• Essex Police welcomed anti-social behaviour being included higher up on the Commissioner’s agenda, and the new focus on confronting the wide range of issues.  The Panel noted that many of the solutions to the issues were held by other organisations which could help provide diversions and alternative activity.  It was important to prevent anti-social behaviour rather than simply moving it on to other locations.

• The Panel noted the need for greater Police engagement with families when mental health issues were involved.

The Panel welcomed and noted the report.

The Panel considered report EPCP/16/16 presented by the Commissioner which provided an update on:

i) the Essex Police Estate Strategy and the principles that underpin it;
ii) the core components that will comprise the Future Estate Model and the high level planning to achieve them; and
iii) the benefits that the Estate Strategy will deliver.

The following points were made during the ensuing discussion.

• The Commissioner indicated that on Page 100 of the agenda pack, Primary Operating Locations (POLs), the list of proposed sites should also have included Clacton.

• The Commissioner explained that discussions were underway with the Essex Fire Service on how to make best use of the two estates.  One option being explored was the development of additional space at the Essex Fire Authority’s Kelvedon Park site.

• The Commissioner commented that the existing Essex Police Headquarters at Springfield, Chelmsford, were no longer fit for purpose and would be sold for redevelopment.  He was exploring a more modular approach to locating resources which would help increase the visibility of police officers across Essex.

• The Panel noted the Commissioner’s intention to use some of the funds released from property disposals to re-invest into new technologies.

• The Commissioner would provide regular updates.

The Panel noted the report.

The Commissioner provided the Panel with a brief update during which the following points were made:

• The Ambulance Service had been invited to the Commissioner's Emerrgency Services Collaboration Board but did not wish to be part of the process at this point.  However, they were keen to remain informed and updated.  Ten operational projects between police and fire were currently underway and documentation was available on request.

• Further collaboration was underway between Essex Police and Essex Fire Authority to explore the benefits of having joint estates.  The Panel noted the example given on the possibility of combining Boreham (Police) and Lexden (Fire Authority) workshops.

• The initial draft of a Local Business Case in relation to the joint governance of Essex Police and Fire services was nearing completion.  It was anticipated that the Policing and Crime Bill would achieve Royal Assent in January/February 2017.

The Panel noted the report.

The Panel considered report EPCP/17/16 by the Secretary to the Panel which provided an update on some of the work that had been undertaken outside of its formal meetings.

The Chairman and Secretary had met with their counterparts from the Kent Police and Crime Panel and had decided to continue to meet on a regular basis to share information and understand how each of the Panels work. The Panel noted that there appeared to be little appetite in Kent for the Police and Fire collaboration.

The Secretary to the Panel gave advance notice of the Essex Fire Authority’s intention to invite Panel Members to attend its SOLACE-facilitated workshops. Members were encouraged to participate in the workshops, taking into account the potential future role of the Panel. The Crime Commissioner confirmed that he would also be involved.

The Panel considered report EPCP/18/16 by the Secretary to the Panel concerning the planning of the Panel’s business.

The Panel was informed that at each future meeting it would receive a report on one of the new Police and Crime Plan priorities.

The Panel agreed the content of the Forward Look.

The Commissioner was pleased to inform the Panel that the latest HMIC PEEL efficiency inspection report confirmed that Essex Police had achieved a ‘good’ judgement.