Agenda item

The Commissioner introduced his report and provided an update on policing numbers which had increased from the position reported in the papers. He also highlighted the increasing level of diversity among officers.

Councillor Whalley-Hoggins asked if more detail could be included in the performance summary at the start of the report.

The Commissioner responded that the reports were useful documents drawn up by the Assurance and Service Improvement Team (ASI) in the Force. He stated that ASI were currently an Alliance function and a new Warwickshire team would need to be established which provided an opportunity to review the key performance indicators and how performance was reported.

Andy Davis suggested that the Planning and Performance Working Group work with the OPCC to review the performance reports.

In response to Councillor O’Rourke, The Commissioner stated that repeat victimisation would be picked up by the Harm Hub which was based at Bedworth but operated County wide.

Councillor Davies stated that the report showed ‘exceptional volumes’ of child at risk markers applied to cases. She noted the explanation that this was due to an improvement in the use of keywords rather than an increase in crimes involving children but sought assurances that the Commissioner would monitor levels to ensure that this was the case.

The Commissioner responded that the Athena Case management software was only as reliable as the information that was entered into it and while use of the system had improved there were still issues around keywords. David Patterson added that the most recent data did show that ‘child at risk’ markers had returned to expected levels but that it would be monitored going forward.

Councillor Whalley-Hoggins noted that while instances of domestic violence had increased there had not been a similar increase in the use of Domestic Violence Protection Notices which might be expected.

David Patterson responded that it was a good point and an area about which the OPCC was trying to gain a better understanding.

The Chair stated that the he was concerned about the levels of victim satisfaction reported in the papers particularly the fall from 96% satisfaction at first contact to 64% satisfaction around follow up for victims of domestic abuse. The Chair asked if the report due to come to the Panel on the Victims Service could be expanded to include a closer look at satisfaction levels..

David Patterson responded that the Commissioner had challenged the Force on victim satisfaction and it was an area senior officers had recognised as an issue. A group within the Force with involvement from the OPCC had been established to look at the victim journey and ensure that performance indicators were measuring the right things. The Commissioner added that domestic violence was a societal issue and while the police response and improving the journey of victims was important it needed a whole system approach to truly address the issue. 

In response to Councillor O’Rourke, the Commissioner stated that encouraging victims to report crimes required a two-pronged approach from the Police. Firstly, victims needed to feel confident that they would be listened to and their reports taken seriously and then secondly the police needed to be able to act on those reports and deliver positive outcomes.

In response to Councillor Whalley-Hoggins, The Commissioner acknowledged that there had been an increase in reported crimes in the Stratford on Avon area but noted that the levels were still relatively low. He stated that the new officers being recruited would increase the strength of the safer neighbourhood teams improving local policing.