Agenda and minutes

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Items
No. Item

1.

APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE AND PERSONAL MATTERS

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor John Prosser (Carmarthenshire County Council) and Councillor Stephen Joseph (Pembrokeshire County Council).

 

The Panel was advised that Councillor Jim Jones’ (Carmarthenshire County Council) nomination as a Panel Member was awaiting approval by the Home Office. The Panel wished Councillor Jones a speedy recovery after recent hospital treatment and was looking forward to welcoming him to a future Panel meeting.

2.

DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST

Additional documents:

Minutes:

There were no declarations of personal interest made at the meeting.

3.

TO SIGN AS A CORRECT RECORD THE MINUTES OF THE MEETING HELD ON THE 24TH JULY 2020 pdf icon PDF 438 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

RESOLVED that the minutes of the Dyfed-Powys Police and Crime Panel meeting held on the 24th July 2020 be signed as a correct record.

4.

MATTERS ARISING FROM THE MINUTES (IF ANY)

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Minute 10. Draft Statement of Accounts 2019/20 Narrative Report

 

The Panel was advised that the Commissioner’s final Annual Statement of Accounts was now available on the website of the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner.

5.

QUESTION ON NOTICE TO THE PANEL FROM S.J., POWYS

“Does Mr Llywelyn have any plans to invest money and resources in our smaller Police Stations across the Powys area? For example, Hay, Builth Wells, Crickhowell, Prestigne etc? With the uplift in Officer numbers, surely there is scope to put some more bobbies back into our small stations?”

Additional documents:

Minutes:

“Does Mr Llywelyn have any plans to invest money and resources in our smaller Police Stations across the Powys area? For example, Hay, Builth Wells, Crickhowell, Prestigne etc? With the uplift in Officer numbers, surely there is scope to put some more bobbies back into our small stations?”

 

The Panel was advised of a correction to the published meeting agenda. The question by S.J. was addressed to the Commissioner and not, as stated in the agenda, to the Panel.

 

Response by the Commissioner:

The Commissioner advised that decisions around the operational deployment of police officers were under the direction of the Chief Constable. In conversations with the Chief Constable, it has been agreed that officers being recruited over the next few years should be deployed within all communities where possible, however this had to be balanced with the need to provide additional resources to specialist areas such as Cybercrime and CID. With regard to investments into police stations, the Commissioner advised that the Estates Strategy was currently under review and there had been a steer not to reduce the footprint of police stations across the force area. Existing buildings were subject to a programme of ongoing surveys and improvements.

 

6.

QUESTIONS ON NOTICE FROM PANEL MEMBERS TO THE COMMISSIONER

Additional documents:

6.1

QUESTION FROM COUNCILLOR ALUN LLOYD JONES

“Commissioner, do you agree that the safeguarding of vulnerable care leavers is an important issue in which the police have a role. If you do, how do you ensure that Dyfed-Powys Police performs that role appropriately and what has your scrutiny of the force told you about the strengths and weaknesses of its approach. What changes (if any) would you like to see in the approach the force takes?”

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

“Commissioner, do you agree that the safeguarding of vulnerable care leavers is an important issue in which the police have a role. If you do, how do you ensure that Dyfed-Powys Police performs that role appropriately and what has your scrutiny of the force told you about the strengths and weaknesses of its approach. What changes (if any) would you like to see in the approach the force takes?”

 

Response from the Commissioner:

The Commissioner advised that the police had a significant role to play in relation to the safeguarding of vulnerable care leavers. This was being delivered through a partnership approach and Dyfed Powys Police was involved at a strategic level in the safeguarding board for children and adults.

With regard to scrutiny, the Commissioner advised that performance was being assessed through internal meetings, attendance at safeguarding board meetings and deep dive scrutiny exercises. Weaknesses identified around the identification of various vulnerabilities and the timeliness of the assessment process were being addressed through the establishment and enhancement of the Command and Control Centre’s vulnerability desk and daily multiagency management meetings to deliver and end-to-end approach.

6.2

QUESTION FROM PROFESSOR IAN ROFFE

“The impact of Covid has been multi-faceted and could change aspects of operational policing going forward. Police officers and PCOS already carry necessary equipment to protect themselves and undertake their work. Is the Commissioner aware of any studies being undertaken relating to the future equipment requirements resulting from the pandemic, such as in the fields of protective helmets? What is the Commissioners view of the financial and other implications? Also in transport there are potential issues for example, in the need for physical separation between officers and also with arrested citizens?  There is also a growth in EV vehicles for transport.  What processes are in place for future scoping of the potential support needs for policing in Dyfed Powys?”

 

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

“The impact of Covid has been multi-faceted and could change aspects of operational policing going forward. Police officers and PCOS already carry necessary equipment to protect themselves and undertake their work. Is the Commissioner aware of any studies being undertaken relating to the future equipment requirements resulting from the pandemic, such as in the fields of protective helmets? What is the Commissioner’s view of the financial and other implications? Also, in transport there are potential issues for example, in the need for physical separation between officers and also with arrested citizens?  There is also a growth in EV vehicles for transport. What processes are in place for future scoping of the potential support needs for policing in Dyfed Powys?”

 

Response from the Commissioner:

The Commissioner advised that he was not aware of any studies being undertaken in relation to future equipment requirements. Dyfed Powys Police was adhering to national guidance and the work of the College of Policing and PPE was readily available to officers that were operating in close proximity to members of the public or on sites that could potentially expose them to the virus. There was an increased emphasis on employee well-being during the coronavirus crisis. Staff sickness levels as a result of Covid-19 were being monitored and did not currently give cause for concern.

 

With regard to financial implications, a claim over £347k for PPE costs had been submitted to the Home Office. A letter had been received from the Policing Minister highlighting additional grants for increased Covid enforcement activity, with an allocation of approximately £200k for Dyfed Powys Police. In addition, an Income Loss Recovery Scheme had been made available to allow police forces to recover 75% of lost income after an initial 5% deduction which had to be absorbed locally, equating to a government reimbursement of 71.25%. Eligible claims were subject to set principles and criteria and a first claim over £149k had been submitted. There was a separate claim over £1m in preparation in relation to the GoSafe Partnership, which Dyfed Powys Police acted as bankers for. Net financial losses would be factored into the financial reports, which would be considered at the PAB meetings.

 

In relation to EV vehicles, the Commissioner advised that he had provided funding for eight vehicles to be used in Neighbourhood Policing Teams. The fleet management strategy was considering ways to expand this, including the provision of charging infrastructure. Over the next five to ten years a blended approach was being developed as EV vehicles were not suitable for all areas of operational policing.

7.

ANTI-SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR pdf icon PDF 283 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Councillor William Powell, the Panel Lead on ASB, provided a report on the Police and Crime Commissioner’s work to address anti-social behaviour. Councillor Powell advised that the report had been deferred to the 2020-21 municipal year due to the coronavirus pandemic. The report acknowledged the good work that had been done by the Commissioner with regard to ASB and made a number of recommendations. Councillor Powell advised that the report did not cover ASB in relation to the coronavirus pandemic as the evidence-gathering for the report had mainly taken place before the pandemic.

 

Councillor Powell thanked Robert Edgecombe and the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner for their support in preparation of the report. He also acknowledged liaison with Helen Thomas to avoid overlap with her team’s work on CCTV.

 

The Panel thanked Councillor Powell for his comprehensive and insightful report.

 

In response to a query on CCTV provision in Neyland, the Commissioner advised that ASB crime incident number in the area did not currently justify CCTV investment.

 

RESOLVED

9.1.    To note the report;

9.2.       To recommend that the Police and Commissioner that adopt the recommendations contained in the report.

8.

UPDATE ON THE RESPONSE TO THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC pdf icon PDF 183 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Panel considered a report detailing the Commissioner’s response to issues raised as a consequence of the Covid-19 pandemic.

 

The Commissioner advised that the report provided an update around the securing of resources, the making available earmarked reserves and the work of the estates team to ensure work environments were safe and provided for continuity of policing activity. Accountability and engagement work was continuing through PAB meetings, quality assurance panel meetings, virtual engagement days, Facebook live sessions and virtual reviews of custody environments.

 

In response to a query on additional funding to support victims of sexual and domestic abuse, the Commissioner advised that the funding would be ringfenced.

 

RESOLVED that the report be noted.

9.

PROGRESS AGAINST THE POLICE AND CRIME PLAN pdf icon PDF 198 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Panel considered a report on the Commissioner’s progress against the Police and Crime Plan.

 

RESOLVED that the report be noted.

10.

POLICING PROTOCOL - PERFORMANCE REPORT pdf icon PDF 284 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Panel considered a performance report in relation to the Policing Protocol.

 

In response to a query on late submissions, the Panel was advised that HMIC did not issue automatic notifications on the publication of reports and deadlines for required responses. Processes were now in place to monitor the publications of such reports and ensure the timely submission of responses.

 

In response to a query on homeworking arrangements, the Panel was advised that no specific funds would be made available to homeworking staff but staff who were required to work from home as a result of COVID-19 were eligible to apply for tax relief.

 

RESOLVED that the report be noted.

11.

UPDATE ON DEEP DIVE REPORTS pdf icon PDF 281 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Panel considered an update on the deep dive reports into Initial Public Contact and Victim Withdrawal. The Commissioner advised that the reports provided an update on recommendations that had been agreed previously in response to the deep dive scrutiny reports.

 

In response to a query on expected progress, the Panel was advised that the single online home initiative would go live very shortly and a decreased policing demand during lockdown had enabled officers to reduce the backlog of ongoing investigations.

 

In response to a query on Crime Data Integrity, the Panel was advised that low compliance rates were an area of concern that had regularly been raised with chief officers. Specific work such as the end-to-end project was undertaken to ensure better compliance, however progress to date had been slower than expected due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

 

RESOLVED that the update report be noted.

12.

DECISIONS TAKEN BY THE COMMISSIONER pdf icon PDF 183 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Panel considered a report on decisions taken by the Commissioner during the period 10th July to 19th October 2020.

 

A query was raised regarding the monitoring of grant investments into locations across the force area. The Commissioner advised that he maintained a record of grant allocations across the force area and this was taken into consideration in future investment decisions, together with considerations of need and multiple deprivation.

 

In response to a query on the Brecon estate, the Commissioner advised that no definite timeline was available and various options were currently under consideration which aimed to retain the custody provision in Brecon.

 

In response to a query, the Panel was advised that investments into YMCA Swansea and Swansea City Football Club Trust had supported youth activities in the Seaside area of Llanelli.

 

RESOLVED that the report be noted.

 

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