Agenda and minutes

To consider the election of a Chairman of the Panel for the remainder of 2019/20.

Resolved

That Mr Mike Short be elected Chairman of the Panel for the remainder of 2019/20.

A Petition was served on the Chairman by the members of the public who were in attendance.

To consider the appointment of a Vice-Chairman of the Panel for the remainder of 2019/20.

Resolved

That Cllr Bobbie Dove be appointed Vice-Chairman of the Panel for the remainder 2019/20.

To receive any apologies for absence.

Apologies for absence were received from Mark Anderson and Julie Bagwell from Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council.

Mohan Iyengar attended as a substitute for Mark Anderson.

To note the Panel’s Terms of Reference.

The terms of reference for the Panel were noted.

Noted

To note the minutes of the meeting held on Thursday 7 February 2019.

The minutes of the meeting held on Thursday 7 February 2019 were presented to members for their information.  No specific actions outstanding for the Panel to address.

Noted

To receive any declarations of interest.

No declarations of disclosable pecuniary interests were made at the meeting.

However, Cllr Molly Rennie declared that the complainant referred to in Agenda Item 13 was known to her.

To receive questions or statements on the business of the committee from town and parish councils and members of the public.

There were no statements or questions submitted from Town and Parish Councils at this meeting.

There were no public statements and questions submitted for this meeting.

Following a disturbance by members of the public the meeting was adjourned and reconvened at 10.55am.

The Monitoring Officer, Dorset Council, thanked the members of the public whom he had spoken with during the recess and he recognised the seriousness of the concerns that had been expressed to him.   As the concerns and allegations raised were not within remit of the Panel the Monitoring Officer explained that the Police and Crime Panel was not the right forum in which to air them.  He undertook to meet separately with some of those who had raised concerns and on this basis the meeting went ahead without any further interruption.

To note the Panel’s Rules of Procedure.

The Rules of Procedure for the Panel were noted.

Noted

To consider a report from the Police and Crime Commissioner.

The Panel considered a report by the Chief Executive, OPCC which outlined the

appointment process for the selection of the Chief Finance Officer (Treasurer).

The Chief Executive, OPCC explained that the confirmatory hearing for the appointment of the Chief Financial Officer  was required by the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011.

The Chairman thanked the current Chief Financial Officer for her all her hard work during her time with OPCC.  The PCC also took the opportunity to express his thanks publicly.

The Chairman of the Police and Crime Panel had acted as a silent observer during the appointment process and confirmed that it had been clear, honest, unbiased and transparent and he was satisfied that the marking system was fair.

The Police and Crime Commissioner introduced his preferred candidate to members, Ms Julie Strange. This vacancy had been advertised during December 2018 and January 2019 and interviews were arranged for 5 February 2019 but unfortunately an appointment could not be made at that time.  The post was then re-advertised in April 2019 and three applicants out of the five applications received were interviewed. References had now been taken up for Ms Strange and vetting completed.

The Chairman invited Ms Strange to share her career to date with members.

Ms Strange explained that she had worked for the past 5 years with the Dorset Councils Partnership within Dorset.  She was the Head of Financial Services and Deputy 151 Officer for all three of the councils within the Partnership. Her team had been awarded a financial innovation award in 2018.

Following a question from a member about where she sat with the economics of a police force, Ms Strange advised that Police operated in the same legal regime as the local authorities although the pension scheme arrangements were slightly different.  She would be meeting shortly with the current postholder for a briefing and appreciated that there would be areas specific to policy that she would need to learn about.  Nevertheless, she was confident she would readily familiarise herself with these areas.  Ms Strange confirmed that this would be her only employment.  The Chief Executive re-affirmed to the Chairman that all references for the successful applicant had been checked.

Resolved

1. That following full and comprehensive discussion the Commissioner’s preferred candidate of Ms Julie Strange for appointment to the post of Chief Financial Officer (Treasurer) be supported unanimously.

2. That the Chairman would write to the PCC stating that the Police and Crime Panel supported the appointment.

Reason for Decision

To assist the Panel in conducting a fair review of the process followed by the

Commissioner and the suitability of the preferred candidate.

To receive an update of progress against the Police and Crime Plan Q4 2018/19 to enable Panel members to scrutinise performance, seek assurance and assess outcomes achieved in the reporting period.

The Panel considered a report informing them of the progress against the Police and Crime Plan and Priorities 2017-21. The report provided information on the financial outturn position for the year ending 31 March 2019, including updates on the following items:-

CEO talked members through the report explaining the pillar themes and highlighted the headlines for each pillar. 

The PCC highlighted areas of work related to each of the pillar themes with members of the Panel who were leading on each of the themes in the Plan were also invited to provide updates.

Pillar 1 - Protecting People at Risk and Harm - Cllr Julie Bagwell

The PCC highlighted the work with county lines and the recruitment for the Police Cadets Scheme.  He noted that in reality 1 in 3 calls related to people with Mental Health concerns with potentially 1 in 10 calls related to people in crisis. In respect of police resources regarding cases of Mental Health crisis, the PCC advised they were working with partners to help reduce this. He highlighted the work in different areas to help with this which included community retreats and the24/7 crisis line.

Following a question about CCTV, the PCC confirmed he is both funding and co-ordinating this work. It was around £300k capital and revenue funding, he hoped it would ultimately become a pan Dorset project and he was currently in conversation with Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council (BCP).  Towns that currently didn’t have CCTV would need to raise funds to enter into a partnership with the PCC who would also consider contributing some resource to the project.

The PCC anticipated that the Bobby Van in the future would be self-funding and completely sustainable. The van was being procured and the post was currently being graded.  The aim was to launch in December and the governance of this would be through the Innovation Board.

Following a question from the Vice-Chairman regarding how success was measured in case of domestic violence and hate crime, the PCC advised firstly that there was a direct correlation between domestic violence incidents and crime with the decrease in one category being linked to the increase in another. With hate crime it was difficult to benchmark but he confirmed that hate crime remained a big priority for him. 

In respect of knife crime awareness, the PCC advised there was still work to be done on this but had commissioned Safewise to provide some intervention training in schools. This was a clear priority area for him and noted that the majority of incidents of knife crime usage were domestic abuse related.  He added that there was a very different profile in Dorset to what was happening in London and Bristol, for example, in relation to knife crime.

Pillar 2 - Working with our Communities - Cllr Les Fry and Cllr David Taylor

The PCC reported they were still seeing reductions in killed and seriously injured on our roads but there was no room for complacency.  A dedicated police  ...  view the full minutes text for item 10.

To receive the OPCC’s Draft Annual Report for 2018/19.

The Panel considered a report by the PCC's Chief Executive that presented the Draft Annual Report 2018-19 for consideration prior to publication in a months' time.

The Director of Operations informed members of the following information that was available via the PCCs website:-

·         An electronic version of the police and crime plan

·         An online tracker in respect of police and crime plan delivery; and

·         An events calendar for information.

Resolved

1. That comments by the Panel on the Draft Annual Report are submitted to the Clerk by 19 July 2019; and

2. That the final Draft Annual Report be circulated to the Panel prior to publication.

To receive an update on the progress of the implementation of agreed actions.

The Panel considered a report by the Chief Financial Officer, OPCC which provided members with an update on the OPCC work to review Dorset Police’s vehicle fleet.

The report identified assurances that were provided by undertaking this work but recognised there was still more work to do.  This area now needed to be owned and accepted by the Force.  The Chief Financial Officer was still seeking more transparency and had taken a report through the Resource Control Board with recommendations and undertook to report back to the Panel later in the year.

The Chairman congratulated the Officer on an excellent report and highlighted that the key issue now was strategic management.  He asked for a report to come back to Police and Crime Panel on a vehicle replacement policy in order to assure the Dorset taxpayer they were getting value for money.  The policy was detailed in the original PCC Vehicle Fleet report (June 2018) but had yet to materialise.

One member noted that whilst it was a police responsibility he was asking the PCC to ensure that the Policy was delivered.  The PCC advised he was more concerned about old cars driving around and potentially putting police officers at risk but would continue to follow up on this.

In respect of the vehicle fleet, the PCC advised that there was a national transport consortium whereby the Government advised what vehicles could be used. He confirmed that Dorset Police had its own in-house vehicle servicing.

Resolved

That an update be provided to the Panel on the progress of the Vehicle Replacement Policy for the meeting scheduled for Tuesday 24 September 2019.

To receive an update from the Chairman of the Panel of any non-criminal complaints that have been received by the Panel in respect of the PCC. 

To also receive the minutes from the Complaints Sub-Committee meetings held on 18 March and 17 April 2019 and an update on any necessary actions.

Cllr Molly Rennie declared that the complainant referred to in this item was known to her.

The Group Manager – Governance and Assurance presented the minutes from the Complaints Sub-Committee meetings held on 18 March and 17 April 2019.

Members were also provided with a report from the Chairman of the Complaints Sub-Committee which covered all aspects of areas highlighted as a matter of concern by the complainant.  This matter had now been dealt with by the existing complaints process and concluded. Any further issue regarding this complaint could be take up with the Local Government Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO).  A standard letter had been produced should any further communication be necessary. The Chairman of the Complaints Sub-Committee felt there some lessons to be learned around transparency of the process which would be helpful to review at the next Complaints Sub-Committee meeting.  He asked the Panel to appoint 2 further members to the Complaints Sub-Committee to complete a committee of 5 members.

Resolved

1. That Les Fry and Barry Goringe be appointed to the Complaints Sub-Committee.

2. That a meeting of the Complaints Sub-Committee be arranged to review the complaints process in order to bring back to the Panel in September.

3. That the Monitoring Officer issue the standard letter as discussed to members.

To consider the Work Programme for the Panel.  Panel members are invited to identify and suggest topics for inclusion in the forward Work Programme.

The Panel considered its Work Programme and noted the inclusion of the following

items:-

• Further follow up of BW video
• Deep dive into Police Bail
• Further briefing around commissioning
• Vehicle Procurement

The Chief Executive, OPCC advised members there would be an opportunity to brief Panel members on Monday 9 September at the OPCC to talk about OPCC business and introduce members to the team.

The PCC advised members of the Police Open Day on Saturday 20 July 2019 and invited all members to attend.

The Chairman advised members that it was quite likely to be the last meeting for Mark Taylor, Group Manager - Governance and Assurance, and wished to thank him for all his help and support over the past 3 years.  The PCC also conveyed his thanks and appreciation.

Resolved

That the work programme be updated accordingly.

To answer any questions received in writing by the Chief Executive by not later than 10.00am on Thursday 4 July 2019.

There were no questions submitted by Members of the Panel.

To consider any items of business which the Chairman has had prior notification and considers to be urgent pursuant to section 100B (4) b) of the Local Government Act 1972. The reason for the urgency shall be recorded in the minutes.

There were no urgent items of business.