The Chairs of the Budget Working Group and Planning & Performance Working Group will provide an update on Working Group activities since the last meeting of the Panel.
Minutes:
Planning and Performance Working Group
Andy Davis provided an update of the recent meeting of the Planning and Performance Working Group. In its analysis of performance, the Group had continued to focus on the four priority areas of rape, domestic abuse, 101 communications, and total crime outcomes. Attention had also been given to training arrangements for student officers and national trends in this area. He advised that consideration had been given to levels of consistency in the support offered to the four Community Safety Partnerships (CSPs). It was apparent that experiences differed across CSPs, including levels of engagement by partnership organisations. It was agreed that the OPCC would convene a meeting of the four CSP chairs to examine areas of common interest, share good practice, and achieve improved consistency.
Andy Davis reported that consideration had been given to the effectiveness of new approaches by Warwickshire Police to address County Lines. This had been well received. Attention had also been given to the resourcing implications of continued high levels of Public Order offences. Future meetings would focus on the recommendations emerging from the PEEL (Police Efficiency, Effectiveness and Legitimacy) inspection of Warwickshire Police.
Andy Davis stated that the Group had welcomed the update from the OPCC outlining plans for the Police and Crime Plan Performance Framework initiative. Good progress had been made and it was considered that the Framework would provide a valuable tool for ongoing scrutiny. At its meeting in March 2023, the Group would focus on approaches by the Commissioner and his Office to statistical analysis, including how data was used to hold the Force to account.
Budget Working Group
The Chair provided an update of monitoring undertaken by the Budget Working Group. He emphasised the importance of accounting methodologies which enabled expenditure to be monitored on a month-by-month basis. This would enable an improved awareness of what costs would be incurred during the remaining months of the financial year and allow any burgeoning problems to be swiftly detected and resolved.
The Police and Crime Commissioner provided assurance that expenditure was being closely monitored. A monthly summary of expenditure and income was provided by Warwickshire Police. This was supplemented by a monthly finance meeting with the Force which examined the accounts five weeks in arrears. He advised that the OPCC followed guidelines recommended by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA). The methodology followed by the OPCC was consistent with practices utilised by local authorities in Warwickshire and other police forces in England and Wales. He commented that the approach proposed by the Budget Working Group presented certain benefits; however, it was more labour-intensive and hiring additional staff for this purpose would not be a good use of public money.
In response to Andrew Davies, the Commissioner advised that the outlook for setting of the budget for 2023/24 depended upon the quantum of the national funding settlement and the amount that taxpayers in Warwickshire were prepared to contribute. He stated that his pledge to the electorate was to increase the number of police officers in Warwickshire to the highest affordable level. When setting the budget, he would seek to ensure that the taxpayer received value for money.