Agenda item

Consideration was given to a report from the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner which detailed Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) PEEL (Police Effectiveness, Efficiency and Legitimacy) inspection regime.

It was reported that it was the role of HMIC to independently assess police forces and policing across a wide range of policing activity. HMIC decides on the depth, frequency and areas to inspect based upon their judgement about what is in the public interest.

Section 55(5) of the 1996 Police Act requires Police and Crime Commissioners to prepare comments on any of HMIC’s published reports that relate to their Force, and then publish these in the manner they see fit. Section 55(6) required Police and Crime Commissioners to send a copy of these comments to the Home Secretary.

Members noted that the Police Efficiency 2016 report was published on 3 November 2016. The inspection considered the extent to which the Force is efficient at keeping people safe and reducing crime. The three questions considered by HMIC were:

1.    How well does the Force understand the current and likely future demand?

2.    How well does the Force use its resources to manage current demand?

3.    How well is the Force planning for demand in the future?

South Yorkshire Police had been assessed as requiring improvement in respect of the efficiency with which it keeps people safe and reduces crime. The Panel noted the Chief Constable’s response to the report.

The Effectiveness Inspection took place in South Yorkshire on 17 October 2016. This would seek to give a rating on how effective South Yorkshire Police are at keeping people safe and reducing crime, previously the Force were rated as requiring improvement. The Police Effectiveness Report will be published in Spring 2017.

It was noted that HMIC had published its rating for Leadership for South Yorkshire Police on 8 December 2016 which had indicated that improvement was required.

Panel Members reflected on the Peer Review undertaken earlier in the year following the suspension of the former Chief Constable. The Police and Crime Commissioner indicated that he considered the peer review process to have been more agile and insightful than the approach of HMIC and many of the issues identified by HMIC had long been identified by the Force and plans had been developed and were being implemented to address those issues.

Panel Members identified that reviewing performance was an area where they could add value and support the work of the Police and Crime Commissioner. Whilst Members did not wish to duplicate any existing performance monitoring activity, the Panel should seek assurances in respect of areas where issues had been identified and that measures were implemented to address underperformance.

The Panel reiterated its wish to see the proposals being developed by the Chief Constable in respect of reforming neighbourhood policing in South Yorkshire. The Police and Crime Commissioner acknowledged the significant contribution that local Councillors would have to make to support a new neighbourhood policing model, as part of the drive to strengthen trust and confidence in the police.  

In response to a comment, the Police and Crime Commissioner set out his position in respect to the Police and Crime Bill’s provisions to enhance collaboration between emergency services, specifically between Fire & Rescue and the Police. There was provision within the bill for the Police and Crime Commissioner to have a role within the Fire Service, but in South Yorkshire there was no intention to merge blue light services, but there would be a need for further collaboration in future.

Resolved:-

1.    That the report be noted.

2.    That a report be submitted in February 2017 detailing trends and volumes in respect of contact through 999 emergency calls and 101 non-emergency calls.

3.    That a report be submitted in February 2017 profiling the police staff numbers by rank, gaps in numbers, the retirement profile of the force and the strategy to backfill or boost those numbers in the future.