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SUSSEX POLICE AUTHORITY

REPORT OF THE SUSSEX POLICE AUTHORITY

The Sussex Police Authority met at Pelham House, Lewes, on Thursday, 9 October 2003.
Attendances:

Mr M Dunn (Chairman)
Mr L H Barnard, Mrs M G Bishop, Dr L E Bush, Miss J A Corcho, Mr R J
Emerson, Mrs M D Johnson DL, Mr P Jones (Vice-Chairman), Mr J Mortimer,
Mr D O Rogers, Mr I Scotland, Mrs A Swain, Mr R Thomas, Mrs M C Turner
and Dr J M M Walsh RD.

1 Public Consultation

1.1 The Police Authority embarked on its new public consultation arrangements in
September. As part of these new arrangements, two public meetings are to be held in each
local authority area in 2003/2004 with the aim of ensuring that the Police Authority’s statutory
duties to consult, as required under the Police Act 1996, are met. The first round of these
meetings started at Littlehampton on 2 September 2003 followed by meetings at Hastings,
Eastbourne, Bexhill, Peacehaven, Worthing, Uckfield, Shoreham, Chichester and Crawley.
Meetings are also being held in October and November at Steyning and East Grinstead. The
main purpose of the meetings is to consult local people on their priorities for policing in
Sussex so that the Police Authority and the Force will be aware of those priorities when
considering matters for inclusion in the Local Policing Plan for Sussex 2004/2005.

1.2 In addition to the public meetings, which are being chaired by the appropriate
local member of the Police Authority, and to ensure an inclusive consultation process, the
Authority is also engaging in consultation with the community through attending various
public events across Sussex as well as using more direct methods such as focus groups.
Events attended by the Police Authority’s officers up to the date of the Authority’s meeting
had included the AGM of the Sussex Association of Local Councils; Eastbourne 999 Event;
Billingshurst Community Open Day; Worthing Local Strategic Plan Consultation Event;
Brighton Gay Pride; Bluebell Railway Event; Festival of Wick, Littlehampton; and the East
Sussex Association for the Blind.

1.3 Focus groups are also an important mechanism for consulting local people.
The East Sussex Association for the Blind ran a focus group for the Police Authority in July
and more are being planned with “4 Sight” (West Sussex Association for the Blind), the
Sussex Federation of Small Businesses, Ethnic Minority Support Groups, Carers, the
Terence Higgins Trust, the Youth Service and Youth Council, and other groups of young
people. Articles have also been published in the newsletters of the West Sussex Disability
Network, the West Sussex Association for the Disabled, the East Sussex Association for the
Blind, and Partnership News (a West Sussex Health newsletter) describing the roles and
responsibilities of the Police Authority and its new consultation arrangements.

1.4 At all public events, questionnaires have been circulated to members of the
public. These have already revealed a great deal of interesting information about the
priorities for policing as seen by different sections of the community. A full analysis of the
information obtained will be presented to the next meeting of the Authority’s Community
Liaison Working Party towards the end of November and the information will then help inform
the Authority’s Planning and Performance Steering Group and the Authority itself in their
consideration of the draft Local Policing Plan at their meetings in November and December.

1.5 Various methods will be used for feeding back information to the people
consulted. This will be through the consultation meetings themselves, the website, press
releases and through Community Safety Partnerships. Consideration is also being given to e-
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mail marketing through the Police Authority’s website and a database being developed by the
Force.

1.6 The Police Authority is keen that the widest possible publicity is given to the
meetings and has asked for further consideration to be given to the steps taken to advertise
and publicise them. The Authority has acknowledged that this was the first round of such
meetings and that lessons will be learnt for the future with regard to publicising the meetings
and ensuring that everyone who has an interest in attending is aware of the meetings and
invited. The Authority is keen to encourage the attendance of local people at the meetings to
have their say about local policing priorities.

2 Local Policing Plan for Sussex 2004/2005

2.1 The Police Authority has been informed about the key issues identified to date
for consideration for inclusion in the Local Policing Plan for Sussex 2004/2005. These issues
had been identified as having the potential to impact on policing in Sussex over the next two
years and beyond, and had been suggested to the Authority as the key issues coming
forward from central government or the outcomes of local consultation.

2.2 As far as central government is concerned, the National Policing Plan (NPP)
2004/2007 had been revised to take account of feedback received during the first of its three
years. Early discussions had indicated that the main themes for the 2004/2005 NPP would be
community safety, community engagement and civil renewal, tackling anti-social behaviour
and disorder, continuing reductions in crime, and countering terrorism and the threat of
terrorism.

2.3 Underpinning the revised NPP is the concept of civil renewal. This aims to
produce strong and active communities that contribute to, and enhance, public policy and the
development of a civil society. Civil renewal is based on the notion of “localism”, a process
that encourages the active involvement of the community in obtaining services that are
important to them. Sussex Police have already made progress in this area through the
establishment of Neighbourhood Policing Teams and this work will be complemented by the
introduction of local action teams.

2.4 In addition to local engagement, the Local Policing Plan will include an update
on the Force Operational Review which has been implemented across Sussex, the
recruitment and retention of Sussex Police staff, the results of the public opinion survey, and
the use of Police Community Safety Officers.

2.5 The Local Policing Plan will include a commentary on the progress the Force
has made against the tasks and promises made in the 2003/2004 Plan, for example, the
improved accessibility and visibility of Sussex Police.

2.6 As indicated in paragraph 1 of this report, the public consultation meetings

being held by the Police Authority have provided information on the policing priorities that
local people wish to be considered for inclusion in the Local Policing Plan. All comments and
feedback will be considered by the Authority’s Planning and Performance Steering Group on
27 November 2003 and a draft Local Plan considered by the Police Authority at its meeting
on 18 December 2003.
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3 Developing the Extended Police Family in Sussex

3.1 Part 4 of the Police Reform Act 2002 provides a new legal framework which
enables Police Forces to take the opportunity of delivering, in other ways, a wide range of
policing services that have traditionally been provided only by police officers.

3.2 The notion of the extended police family was outlined in a White Paper
“Policing a New Century : a Blueprint for Reform” published by the Home Office in 2001 and
now provided for in the Police Reform Act 2002. In essence, the legislation developed the
aims outlined in an HMIC report published in 2001 “Open All Hours” which sought to
maximise the visible impact of police resources, the better management of patrol officers,
and the mobilisation of external resources to deliver core business. The extended police
family offers new ways to achieve these aims, particularly in the areas of public reassurance
and visibility.

3.3 Both the NPP and the results of local consultation have revealed rapidly
escalating expectations of policing, both from central government and the general public. The
Home Secretary has stated that the Government will focus on “localism” – the delivery of
most policing services at the local level. This is similar to the concept of neighbourhood
policing already established across Sussex.

3.4 Although there have been recent increases in police officer numbers in Sussex,
there has also been an accompanying increase in expectations. The Police Authority was
informed at its meeting on 13 February 2003 that the aim would be to employ 3,500 police
officers in Sussex by March 2006. Recently published statistics indicated that Sussex Police
would need to recruit 361 additional police officers to achieve the average ratio of police
officers to population for non-Metropolitan Forces in England. The opportunities available
under the Police Reform Act 2002 create the potential to bridge the gap, at least partially,
using the wide range of staff that can be recruited under the Act.

3.5 The principal driver for change is the new legislation to enable the extended
police family to operate. Other important factors are government and public expectations that
the police will improve performance, greater localism, recruitment and retention difficulties,
increased training requirements, and the need for a more flexible workforce so that
appropriately trained staff can deal with issues that do not necessarily require the
involvement of a police officer.

3.6 The Police Reform Act allows limited powers to be extended to individuals
other than police officers and special constables – these can be designated Police Authority
employees, contracted-out staff and arrangements made under community safety
accreditation schemes. The Act creates four roles which may exercise these powers – Police
Community Support Officers (PCSOs), investigating officers, detention officers and escort
officers. In the case of the last two roles, police powers may be exercised by contracted out
staff.

3.7 PCSOs play a key role in providing increased reassurance. The Chief
Constable in consultation with the Police Authority has designated 74 PCSOs in Sussex with
limited powers to tackle crime and anti-social behaviour.

3.8 The Chief Constable can also designate civilians as investigating, detention
and escort officers with limited police powers, and improve partnership working with local
authorities, housing associations, private security companies and others by establishing
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community safety accreditation schemes. A report on this will be made to the next meeting of
the Authority’s Community Liaison Working Party in November.

3.9 The cumulative effect of these steps is to change significantly the public face
of policing. Not only do they enable a greater number and wider range of roles to undertake
policing tasks, but they also enable police powers to be shared with other agencies and
organisations. They enable the police service to harness a new range of employees to
support front-line policing and help to incorporate the energies of other organisations to assist
in tackling crime and reassuring communities.

3.10 Some of these proposals have already been developed in Sussex. Some
examples are a neighbourhood warden scheme in Brighton and Hove developed with the
New Deal for Communities (EB4U) a government-funded initiative, a community warden
scheme in Adur and a neighbourhood warden scheme in Hastings.

3.11 In April 2003, 22 PCSOs were appointed in Sussex with Home Office funding.
Some tapered continuation funding is guaranteed until 2006. In August 2003, an additional
52 PCSO posts were created - 40 of these posts were created from joint Home Office and
partnership funding and the other 12 posts were created solely from partnership funding from
East Sussex County Council, West Sussex County Council and Brighton & Hove City
Council.

3.12 The 74 PCSOs are already beginning to provide the reassurance and
presence that the public has demanded of the police service at local level. Equipped with
limited powers designated by the Chief Constable, their presence is being used to prevent
and detect offences and anti-social behaviour that do not need to be addressed by the full
training and powers of police officers. PCSOs have the ability and powers to intervene in
situations at an early stage, preventing escalation and the need for police officers to become
involved.

3.13 PCSOs are working across Sussex in a mix of both urban and rural areas. The
early reaction to them has been favourable. While there has been some criticism that they
represent “policing on the cheap”, it could also be argued that the reduced cost of deploying
PCSOs represents a prudent use of public money as they have the necessary training and
skills to deal with low level anti-social behaviour. They are not intended to become involved in
confrontational incidents and there is an expectation that where they meet hostility or
resistance they will withdraw and observe, as they have no powers to deal with those issues.

3.14 Sussex Police are also starting to explore the potential for employing
investigating and detention officers. Within the Criminal Justice Department, there are plans
to give limited powers to investigating officers for up to 30 members of staff by March 2004.
That Department will also be initiating a pilot project in October 2003 with contracted out staff
designated as detention officers. The designated staff would undertake the more
straightforward tasks currently undertaken by custody officers which would enable Custody
Officers to focus on their primary and legislative role. Potentially, up to 30 Police Sergeants
could be released back to front-line operational policing.

3.15 The Police Authority has been informed of ways in which the Force could
further exploit the opportunities offered by the extended police family. These include the
possibility of building career paths with staff who initially join as PCSOs and then transfer to
the regular Force in due course. The Force could use the period during which staff are
appointed as PCSOs to consider their potential as future police officers and tailor
development plans accordingly. Early evidence has also indicated that people from ethnic
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minorities may be more attracted to join the Service as PCSOs in the first instance. The
proposals offer a greater range of roles to those people who are not able to meet the health
or educational/skills requirements of being a police officer. Also, PCSOs can be recruited,
trained and deployed quicker than police officers in the first instance. This means that they
can make a rapid impact on visibility and reassurance provided that they are properly
directed. The PCSO role and the community safety accreditation schemes offer opportunities
to work in partnership with other agencies and organisations.

3.16 The Police Authority has welcomed the steps already taken by Sussex Police
in implementing the opportunities provided under the Police Reform Act 2002 and the
additional opportunities that a further extension of the police family can offer should further
funding become available. The Authority will need to consider in conjunction with the Chief
Constable and appropriate partner agencies ways of making further use of these
opportunities, subject to funding.

4 Strategies

4.1 The Police Authority has endorsed strategies for its IT provision, estate and
motor fleet and is seeking to include appropriate provision in its Capital Programme for
2004/2005 as part of the budget process, to implement each of the strategies.

4.2 The key principles underpinning the 5 year IT Strategy 2003/2008 are:-

• extracting further business benefits from existing systems;

• improving the methodology for realising business benefits from new systems;
• enhancing security to ensure conformity with ACPO community security policy;
• improving officer productivity by developing further IT training;
• enhancing performance in IT procurement;
• independent benchmarking of IT capability;
• creating an IT apprenticeship to meet the skills gap.

4.3 The Estates Strategy, originally approved by the Police Authority in December
1996 and revised in December 1999 has been reviewed annually. The latest revision takes
into account a number of changes summarised in the following paragraphs.

4.4 The work of the Force Operational Review has been completed and its output
is reflected in the Estates Strategy. Some adjustments have been made to support
Neighbourhood Policing Teams although, by and large, they operate from previously existing
facilities. A total of 18 front offices are being given a facelift using money from the Rural
Police Initiative Fund. This will include new external signage. Security at Headquarters has
been improved by the provision of fencing, access control and a new main gate.

4.5 The Police Authority had previously approved plans to provide four major
incident suites across Sussex as part of the strategy. The first two of these, at Horsham and
at Sussex House, Brighton, are operational. The third, in Littlehampton, will be completed in
the current financial year and the fourth will be built in Eastbourne.

4.6 The main thrust of the Strategy is aimed at modernisation of the Police estate
to meet developing policing needs. Alongside this is the need to provide sufficient revenue
funding for a robust maintenance programme to ensure that the condition of the estate is
maintained.
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4.7 The aim of the Fleet Strategy is to provide Sussex Police with a safe, viable
and cost-effective motor fleet to support the achievement of Force objectives. The Strategy
provides a forward look to 2008 and outlines the planned vehicle replacement programme up
to and including the financial year 2007/2008. The Strategy provides detailed objectives for
the current financial year which fall into the categories of fleet management and maintenance
standards, staff, facilities and management information systems.

4.8 These key strategies are all aimed at improving the core business of Sussex
Police and the delivery of policing services to the people of Sussex.

MARK DUNN

Chairman

9 October 2003