Agenda item

10.10

Under the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) must produce a Police and Crime Plan which sets out the Commissioner's strategic police and crime objectives for the Thames Valley. The PCC has published a Police and Crime Plan for the Thames Valley which covers April 2017 - March 2021.

The Committee is RECOMMENDED to consider the Police and Crime Plan and put any relevant questions to the Police and Crime Commissioner.

Under the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) must produce a Police and Crime Plan which sets out the Commissioner's strategic police and crime objectives for the Thames Valley. The PCC has published a Police and Crime Plan for the Thames Valley which covers April 2017 - March 2021.

Andi Cunningham, Chairman of Wantage & Faringdon NAG spoke about the new police plan and its impact on neighbourhood policing. The split between geographical and problem solving meant that neighbourhood police numbers were halved and the geographical area increased. Neighbourhood policing would be less effective undermining the increased confidence that had been worked for so hard. 

Mr Stansfeld, Thames Valley Police and Crime Commissioner gave a presentation detailing performance over the past year and outlining his strategic priorities as set out in the Plan.  Responding to the comments from Andi Cunningham Mr Stansfeld commented that he held the Chief Constable for account for the delivery of the Plan but tthat as PCC he was not responsible for thee delivery details. The Chief Constable delivery plan had come up with a new way of local policing and although he had some concerns it was being carefully monitored.

Mr Stansfeld responded to questions from Members concerning the priorities:

Vulnerability

1.         Referring to police time spent on people with mental health issues Mr Stansfeld commented that every effort was made not to take such cases into custody but that there were a few, particularly late at night as a last resort. He commended the work of the the NHS triage nurses in Oxfordshire. The percentage of time spent in this way in Oxfordshire was slightly less than the national average.

2.         The issue of abuse or fraud in relation to the frail elderly was a major issue. Neighbourhood officers did a huge amount. Mr Stansfeld’s concern was that police were under pressure and were involved in matters that were not their primary role. Prosecutions were the responsibility of CPS. It was difficult to bring elderly people to court as witnesses. In response to further questions he commented that it was an issue that was not being dealt with appropriately at a national level. He would like to see significant funding for a national professional fraud system.

3.         Mr Stansfeld highlighted that household burglary was referred tom within the report. There had been 3 priorities connected to household burglaries in the first Plan. Numbers were lower than they were and in rural areas numbers were very small. However he had said very clearly that he did not expect a let up in effort and there was still progress to be made.

4.         Mounted police were a resource shared across all of the South East of England. They have officers a viewpoint and were particularly useful for crowd control. They were not in use every day but were extremely effective in some circumstances Asked about the balance between community officers and the use of horses Mr Stansfeld explained that they were used for community policing if not in use elsewhere.

Prevention & Early Intervention

5.         Mr Stansfeld explored with members the potential for fire officers to fulfil the role of PCSOs. He commented that he had previously supported the combining of fire services and then to look how they could combine and work collaboratively with the Police. The number of fires had dropped dramatically and fire officers were fulfilling roles close to that of PCSOs.

6.         Mr Stansfeld discussed the preventative measures that could be taken in relation to the prevention of farm burglaries. A key issue was to ensure that equipment was properly marked. The Police had done a lot to educate people on the importance of registration. Vehicles had been tracked as far as Cyprus and Romania. He acknowledged that they were dealing with serious organised crime but noted that in Oxfordshire the numbers had reduced.

7.         Responding to concerns over female genital mutilation (FGM) explained what actions were being taken and the difficulties the Police faced in dealing with the issue.

8.         Responding to questions about the use of body cameras it was confirmed that they would be used to  prosecute an incident.

9.         Asked about road safety and action to prevent speeding Mr Stansfeld commented that a lot of this rested with District Councils. Only a small percentage of accidents were down to speeding and of those the majority were young people. The Police did have a video that showed the consequences of speeding. He noted that for the first time in decades road deaths were increasing. He pointed to the use of media players and GPS as a reason behind an increase of accidents caused by lack of attention.

Reducing Re-Offending

10.      Mr Stansfeld responded to a query on tagging explained the current limitations on its use and agreed that he would wish to see it more widely used and on a mandatory basis.

Serious Crime and Terrorism

11.      Asked about the balance between investigation of historic crimes and the pursuit of active criminals it was explained that current cases did take priority but that this had to be balanced if the historic crime was of a serious nature. Mr Stansfeld expressed some concern over cases where people were falsely accused.

12.      Mr Stansfeld commented that PREVENT was a good system done reasonably well although there was room for improvement.

Police Ethics and Reform

13.      Mr Stansfeld responded to comments that some police officers in the local community were very good at dealing with young people but that others were not and the query as to what was being done to share good practice and train those that were less good. He stated that it was difficult to train around issues of personality, particularly early in training. It was about local Inspectors ensuring that the right people were in the right place.

Responding to general questions and comments from members Mr Stansfeld made the following points:

14.      1. He explained the role of the Deputy PCC, who in particular would represent him at meetings he was unable to attend and who was taking particular responsibility for commissioning.

15.      Mr Stansfeld undertook to provide a list of local projects funded from the 10% funding set aside to facilitate local projects.

16.      Asked about the savings that needed to be made Mr Stansfeld indicated that the reductions had taken place over the last 4 or 5 years and were largely implemented. He compared the funding he received with that of large metropolitan areas with high crime rates who received more funding. He worried that this rewarded failure ans would like to see changes to the way funding was distributed.

17.         Asked about the Police response to a terror incident similar to those seen elsewhere assurances were given that response would not e a budget issue. In a rural area it was more a question of distance. It would take longer for specialist vehicles to get there than in big cities.

Mr Stansfeld asked that he receive a copy of the questions asked by Members.