Agenda item

Report of the Commissioner of Police

The Sub-Committee received a report of the Commissioner of Police that provided Members with a detailed overview of the findings of the recent HMICFRS PEEL Legitimacy inspection, ownership of Areas for Improvement and arrangements for oversight of progress.

The Head of Governance and Assurance explained that an action was currently in place.  The Chairman asked him what the action plan was, and he advised that this was submitted to the Performance and Resource Management Sub-Committee but could be submitted to this Sub-Committee also if desired.  The Chairman requested that it was. (6)

A Member noted that the report raised some concerns around the lack of appropriate training for stop-and-search received for all relevant officers.

The Chairman asked for clarification of the main issues around Areas for Improvement (AFIs) Nos. 4 & 5.  The Director of Professional Standards explained that the “King Formula” was employed to define “discrimination”.  She advised that the motivation was to avoid encouraging people to merely follow the letter of the law by not specifying defined characteristics.  She also explained that the desire was to engage with complaints immediately to allow maximal use of the 10-day period, noting that complaints resolved within this period are not required to be recorded.  She explained that these planned changes were yet be implemented.  A Member asked when these would come into effect, and the Director of Professional Standards confirmed that they would be prior to the next meeting of this Sub-Committee. (7)

The Chairman asked how AFI No.5, relating to the timeliness and quality of updates supplied to complainants, would be addressed.  The Director of Professional Standards explained that there would be consultation with the complainant about timescale expectations to agree terms.

A Member queried when the causes of concern raised under paragraph 7ii of the report, relating to stop and search bias and practices, would be addressed.  The Chairman requested that this be tracked as a standalone outstanding action. (8)

A Member queried external scrutiny of stop and search, as referenced within Appendix A.  The Chairman requested that the Community Scrutiny Group meeting dates be followed up on, alongside those of the Independent Advisory Group. (9)

A Member asked, in reference to Appendix A, where an overview of all actions not marked as complete was recorded.  The Head of Governance and Assurance explained that the Performance Management Group would address.  The Chairman stated that it was important that addressing these issues was not reliant on failed inspections.  The Head of Governance and Assurance explained that self-assessments were carried out in many of these areas, but often resourcing limitations led to known outstanding actions.  He explained that in many cases follow-up inspections would aim to judge based on improvements made on previously highlighted issues.  He explained that the results of the inspection should not produce any significant surprises as the CoLP were largely aware of the areas requiring improvement.

The Chairman requested that the action plan from the PEEL Legitimacy Inspection be submitted to the next meeting. (6)

RESOLVED – That the report be received.