Agenda item

The Chair invited Mark Norris, Principal Policy Adviser to introduce the report which summarised the findings and recommendations of the Baroness Casey Review of the Metropolitan Police and highlighted some key areas of interest for councils.

Members comments:

·       The Chair commented that data sharing across the country is inconsistent, specifically how police forces allow Local Authorities to access to police data.

·       Secondly, the Chair stated that trust and confidence in the police is linked to the standards in policing and is not just an issue in the MET police.

·       Finally, she outlined the need for the continuation of work to improve the police’s response to violence against women and girls, to meet national targets.

·       All public bodies should have a responsibility for the protection of people, including councils, however, concern was raised regarding the ability to perform these duties which has been eroded by funding cuts and a lack of resources.

·       There is no way of measuring the internal culture within the police. The Chair added that there is no framework or metric to measure improvement overall, across multiple areas from standards to partnerships to culture.

·       It was suggested a method of sharing good practice should be established between many organisations, particularly in addressing violence against women and girls.

·       A member emphasised that the Board must focus on what councils can do to work with police forces rather than addressing what police forces should do, as this is the role of PCCs. The member clarified that PCCs can be held to account by police and crime panels.

·       The Chair raised that the consistency of Safer Neighbourhood Boards across the country needs to be improved, as this would allow good partnership working; these are police led but should have a member council representative on the board.

·       A member highlighted that the consistency and methods through which councils hold PCCs accountable, and PCCs hold Chief Constables accountable, could be researched and greater consistency encouraged, for instance, live stream scrutiny and training.

Decision

The Board noted and discussed the findings and recommendations of the Baroness Casey Report and considered how its conclusions and recommendations are reflected in the Board’s work in the areas outlined in paragraph 32.