Agenda and draft minutes

To receive any apologies for absence.

Apologies were received from:

·       Cllr Stanka Adamcova – substituted by Cllr Claire Crilly

·       Cllr Tony Pickernell

To confirm the minutes of the meeting held on 26 September 2024 as a true and correct record.

Assistant Chief Constable Ian Saunders said that he would provide information about whether the police had the authority to add additional padlocks to doors.

On the proposal of Cllr Vijay Manro, seconded by Cllr Ross Henning, it was resolved to make the:

Decision

To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 26 September 2024 as a true and correct record.

There were no declarations of interest.

To receive announcements through the Chairman.

The Chairman informed the Panel that the Ride Along scheme, allowing Panel members and members of the public to shadow the police when they were out on operations, was scheduled to be up and running by mid-December. All the Panel members confirmed that they were interested in participating in the scheme. It was noted that further information would be provided to the Panel and that the final arrangements would be made with the relevant police teams.

The Panel welcomes contributions from members of the public.

Statements

If you would like to make a statement at this meeting on any item on this agenda, please register to do so at least 10 minutes prior to the meeting. Up to 3 speakers are permitted to speak for up to 3 minutes each on any agenda item. Please contact the officer named on the front of the agenda for any further clarification.

Questions

To receive any questions from members of the public received in accordance with the Panel’s constitution.

Please note that questions must relate to the responsibilities and functions of the Panel and must not relate directly to operational policing matters.

Those wishing to ask questions are required to give notice of any such questions in writing to the officer named on the front of this agenda no later than 5pm on 7 November 2024 in order to be guaranteed of a written response. In order to receive a verbal response, questions must be submitted no later than 5pm on 11 November 2024. Please contact the officer named on the front of this agenda for further advice. Questions may be asked without notice if the Chairman decides that the matter is urgent.

Details of any questions received will be circulated to Committee members prior to the meeting and made available at the meeting and on Wiltshire Council’s website.

There was no public participation.

To receive an update from Chief Constable Catherine Roper.

Chief Constable Catherine Roper updated the Panel about the findings of recent inspections into the performance of Wiltshire Police. She was pleased to report that the latest Police Efficiency, Effectiveness and Legitimacy (PEEL) report from His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS) had found that Wiltshire Police had made progress in all, bar two, areas. An in-depth analysis had been undertaken to understand why progress had not been made in the two areas that had been static and HMICFRS had been assured that the foundations had been put in place to enable progress in these areas in future.

The way that Wiltshire Police had been implementing Operation Soteria, the government's programme to improve the investigation of sexual offences, had also been inspected. Although the formal report had yet to be published, the Chief Constable noted that the force had received positive feedback, including about how it was tackling stalking. Furthermore, Wiltshire Police had undergone an inspection about how it was tackling serious and organised crime. The results of the inspection were expected to be published in the new year.

The Chief Constable explained that Wiltshire Police were keen to embed the progress that had been made. The force was due to hold a strategic summit the following week to review their three-year plan and financial position.

Members of the Panel praised an increase in the visibility of neighbourhood policing teams. The Chief Constable welcomed the feedback from the Panel and explained that she had reversed a change, introduced in 2014, that had merged neighbourhood and response teams. The new model was bearing fruit and empowered neighbourhood teams to carry out more proactive community policing.

The Panel noted that they would welcome further information about the powers that Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs) had to tackle issues such as cycling on pavements.

In reply to concerns raised about the restructure of Wiltshire Police’s response teams, specifically, that the reallocation of officers from Warminster to Trowbridge was impacting response times in Mere, the Chief Constable explained that the aim of the new process was to create greater resilience.  She highlighted that Wiltshire Police had its highest number of police officers in a decade, so had a relatively high proportion of new recruits. The response teams operated a spoke and hub approach where officers would gather and then cars would disperse throughout their areas of responsibility. The Chief Constable was optimistic that, as the level of experience grew within the force, the spoke and hub model could be relaxed so that the officers did not have to gather as frequently. She provided assurances that the model would be closely monitored and refined so that they could provide the best level of service. As it had been reported that a large number of vehicles from other police forces had attended an incident in Mere, she also noted that Wiltshire Police worked closely with neighbouring forces to ensure that cars could respond as quickly as possible in border areas.

The Panel  ...  view the full minutes text for item 69.

To receive an update from Assistant Chief Constable Ian Saunders about the improvement plan for the Crime and Communications Centre.

Assistant Chief Constable Ian Saunders updated the Panel about the measures being put in place to improve performance at the Crime and Communications Centre (CCC). Points included:

·       The Assistant Chief Constable had joined Wiltshire Police in June and had found that the force was full of enthusiastic people that were keen to improve the service.

·       As the CCC had a relatively high number of inexperienced staff, the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC), Philip Wilkinson, OBE, MPhil, had agreed to fund 165 people staff to cover 145 posts. It was anticipated that the numbers of staff would decrease over time as the average level of experience increased.

·       As well responding to calls, the CCC had a responsibility to accurately record crimes within statutory timescales.

·       The CCC received around 111,000 999 and 92,000 101 calls per year as well as processing 65,000 crimes reported using the online system.

·       The CCC were looking at robotics and automation to help improve efficiency, as demand for services was increasing by approximately five percent a year.

·       The government had set a target for 90 percent of 999 calls to be answered within 10 seconds, but currently only five of the 43 police forces in England and Wales were meeting this goal.

·       As the staff in CCC gained experience they were able to answer a wider variety of calls, which allowed for greater flexibility in the way that resources could be delayed. There were good opportunities for progression and many CCC staff went on to become police officers.

·       The force had recently invested in the EISEC geolocation system which allowed calls to be transferred automatically from BT.

·       Digital boards had been installed at the call centre to help staff to review demand. The data on the boards had been updated to allow operators to improve their situational awareness.

·       As stated by the Chief Constable under her update, there had been a significant improvement in performance since August. The CCC were now just two percent away from the national target of answering 90 percent of 999 calls within 10 seconds. 

·       The recent Police Effectiveness, Efficiency, and Legitimacy (PEEL) inspection found that 25.8 percent of 101 calls were abandoned. However, it was likely that the true abandonment rate was significantly lower, as many people ‘phoned back or reported crime online. QueueBuster technology had been introduced so that the public could hang up and be called back. Some forces did have technology that allowed them to differentiate between calls that had truly been abandoned and those that got in touch at a later time.

·       The Assistant Chief Constable chaired an improvement board about transformational change and engaged with the Chief of Corporate Services, John Derryman, about the resources required to continue improvement. The Assistant Chief Constable’s role was to embed the technology and utilise the investments that had been made in the best possible way.

During the discussion, points included:

·       The Panel thanked the Assistant Chief Constable for his update and welcomed the progress that had been made in  ...  view the full minutes text for item 70.

Police and Crime Commissioner Philip Wilkinson, OBE, MPhil to provide an update, including a quarterly Highlight and Performance Report about his Crime Plan.

Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Philip Wilkinson, OBE, MPhil gave a wide-ranging update about the progress towards his Crime Plan, the National Police Air Service (NPAS), collaboration between forces and the financial position of Wiltshire Police. Points included:

·       The National Police Chiefs’ Council was undertaking a review of the strategic framework for how police forces accessed air support. The PCC welcomed the review but noted that he expected that a revised framework would still not be in place for a number of years.

·       The PCC expressed frustration that Wiltshire Police were contributing financially to NPAS to pay for fixed wing aircraft that they rarely used. He highlighted that 80 percent of missions were now carried out using drones and that he had been leading collaboration at a regional level to improve capability.

·       The new government were keen to strengthen collaboration between police forces in a range of areas. The PCC explained that forces in South West England had been leading the way by looking at how they could deliver efficiencies by sharing facilities.

·       It was anticipated by the PCC that the role of PCCs would continue to develop and that PCCs were keen to strengthen powers and local input into criminal justice coordination, such as probation and youth justice services. He explained that, in his view, the current justice system would benefit from having more coordination and joint planning.

·       At a recent meeting that the PCC had with the new Minister of State for Policing, Fire and Crime Prevention, Dame Diana Johnson DBE, she had been unable to confirm what Wiltshire’s central grant for policing would be for 2025/26. The PCC was also seeking clarity about whether central government grant funding, such as the Safer Streets Fund, would be rolled over for another year.

During the discussion, points included:

·       The Panel thanked the PCC for his update.

·       It was not yet confirmed whether the police would have to pay the increase in national insurance announced in the government’s October budget. The PCC was concerned that if Wiltshire Police had to pay the increase it would place significant strain on their resources and would reverse the improvements that been made. 

·       In response to a question about drones, the PCC gave a detailed answer about the number and variety in service with Wiltshire Police. He argued that the police could learn from other organisations, such as the Maritime Agency, that had a long track record of drone usage. He also highlighted the potential strategic advantages that drones could bring, such as helping to inform the number of officers that might be required to attend a particular incident.

·       The Safer Streets Fund and the Serious Violence Duty were government funded schemes that were mostly spent on additional police patrols and street wardens. The PCC believed that these additional resources had made a significant contribution to the 16 percent reduction in reports of anti-social behaviour across Wiltshire. The Chief Executive of the Office of the PCC (OPCC), Naji Darwish, explained that the Safer Streets  ...  view the full minutes text for item 71.

To consider the updated draft of the Police and Crime Plan following the recommendations made by the Panel at the previous meeting.

Report to follow.

Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Philip Wilkinson, OBE, MPhil, introduced the latest draft of his Police and Crime Plan for 2025-2029, and thanked the Panel for the feedback that they had given at the previous meeting. He explained that the improvements made in Wiltshire Police, gave him the confidence to set more specific goals than his previous Crime Plan. He noted that the draft was a working document that had been developed following a wide consultation.

During the discussion, the Panel thanked the PCC for the updated draft and welcomed the changes made. They also suggested that the Crime Plan could better articulate what good practice looked like in tackling the PCC’s second priority of reducing violence and serious harm.

The PCC welcomed the comments and noted that he would revisit that part of the report. He noted that design work would be undertaken and anticipated that the final version of the Crime Plan would be published in the new year.

To receive a presentation about efforts to reduce reoffending.

Representatives from the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner (OPCC), Wiltshire Police and the Probation Service gave a presentation about the multi-agency work that was going on to reduce reoffending.

Caz Deverall-Hart, Strategic Lead Criminal Justice and Reoffending at the OPCC, explained that female offenders were one of the priority groups supported as there had been a significant increase in the rate of female offending in recent years. She then outlined some of the holistic work that was being carried out by the Wiltshire Female Justice Support Board (FJSB), which was established in 2020 to tackle the issue. She explained that the FJSB helped to commission services and develop pathways for female rehabilitation while also ensuring that the work in Wiltshire aligned to national strategies.

Mark Wilkinson, Integrated Offender Manager Supervisor, provided information about the Integrated Offender Management (IOM) programme that was introduced nationally in 2012. He reported that, although 85 percent of the 77 people currently going through the programme in Wiltshire were there on a statutory basis, 15 percent were there voluntarily, which was the third highest proportion in the country. He explained that the IOM programme tackled criminality in people with entrenched behaviours by studying their traits and the triggers that made them commit offences. People going through the programme were supported for at least a six-month period, to understand their motivations, and were then monitored for a further six months. The effectiveness of the of the scheme was shown by the significant reduction in reoffending rate in the six months after people had completed the IOM programme. Although costs to the criminal justice system increased during the period that offenders were on the programme, as they were integrated into their communities, the costs fell significantly afterwards and were lower than the costs before people entered.

Huw Wilford, Acting Head of the Probation Delivery Unit, gave a brief update about recent changes to the standard determinate sentences, which allowed some prisoners to be released 40, rather than 50 percent, of the way though their sentence. He explained that the aim of the scheme was to reduce pressure on prison places but noted that the number of people released early in Wiltshire was relatively small.

The Acting Head of the Probation Delivery Unit also gave an update about the probation reset programme. He explained that, overall, the probation service in Wiltshire was currently supervising 1,832 individuals, including 908 based in Swindon. He noted that there were pressures on staffing in probation and the prison service, so they were trying to use their resources in the most effective way. It had been identified that the service was most impactful in the first two thirds of the time that they spent with their clients, so there had been a shift to focus more resources on this period. Two thirds of the way through the programme, cases would be categorised as rest cases, although people would still be actively monitored. Research suggested that early intervention and support on a licence,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 73.

To note the forward work plan.

The Panel noted their forward work plan. They agreed to add an item about the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner’s police complaints handling process to the plan.

They also noted that they would like further information to be provided about Wiltshire Police’s emergency plans in response to power outages, with a particular focus on the future requirement for landline ‘phones to rely on online connectivity.

Additional details about the call abandonment rate in the Crime and Communications Centre were also requested.    

To receive an update on how the Police and Crime Panel can improve its communications with the wider public.

Apologies were given for a technical glitch which prevented the start of the meeting from being broadcast.

The Chairman noted that the Panel had improved its communications over the past year by broadcasting its meetings online and submitting an annual report to the Full Council meetings of both local authorities. He also noted that the Panel were open to further ideas as to how they could improve their communications.

An opportunity for Members to ask the Police and Crime Commissioner about issues not already discussed during the meeting.

There were no questions for the Commissioner.

To note the future meeting dates below:

·         Thursday 16 January 2025, 10:30am

·         Wednesday 5 February 2025, 10:30am

·         Wednesday 26 March 2025, 10:30am

·         Thursday 26 June 2025, 10:30am

·         Thursday 11 September 2025, 10:30am

·         Tuesday 25 November 2025, 10:30am

The next meeting of the Police and Crime Panel will be on Thursday 16 January 2025, at 10:30am, in Kennet Room, County Hall.

Other future meeting dates were confirmed as:

• Wednesday 5 February 2025, 10:30am
• Wednesday 26 March 2025, 10:30am
• Thursday 26 June 2025, 10:30am
• Thursday 11 September 2025, 10:30am
• Tuesday 25 November 2025, 10:30am