Audit to Action - Progress with the Implementation of Strategy
The Government's CCTV Initiative
The Audit Commission Inspection of the Bradford Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership
Training Implications of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998
Protocols for Reports to the CDRP
Community Safety Partnerships - Joint Media Protocol
To feedback to the CDRP, the outcomes of the Audit to Action Event on May 27 lh and the on-going progress being made with the implementation of the Crime and Disorder Reduction Strategy.
1.1 The Audit to Action Event took place on May 27 th 1999 at the Carlisle Business Centre. It was well attended by members of the CDRP, various key partnerships such as the Drugs and Alcohol Action Team, Youth justice Board, Bradford Alliance Against Racial Harassment, the Domestic Violence Programme Team and the Domestic Violence Forum for Bradford and Keighley.
1.2 In addition to these groups, there were many individuals from a range of statutory, voluntary and private sector agencies present and Sue How) and Supt. Dan Clacher from the Home Office also attended the event.
1.3 The principal aim of the day was to take the strategy forward and begin the action-planning process.
1.4 The overall feedback from the day has been extremely positive, however, a significant number of people left the event in the afternoon consequently impacting on the action planning workshops.
1.5 The two Home Office representatives present were impressed by the enthusiasm and commitment demonstrated on the day by many individuals and agencies and commented on the good progress being made by the Partnership.
2.1 It is clear that the most important task for the CDRP is to oversee the successful implementation of the Crime and Disorder Reduction Strategy in the District.
2.2 To facilitate this, the Strategy Team has evolved into a Strategy Implementation Team.
2.3 The Team consists of key individuals identified to be the Action Officers for priority areas in the Strategy and other individuals important in facilitating the implementation process.
These include: -
Other Strategy Implementation Team Members include: -
2.4 The only Priority area in the Strategy, which still does not have an Action Officer identified, is Drugs. The aim is to have the Drugs Action Team Coordinator as the Action Officer when she comes into post in August. In the interim period, discussions are taking place with the DAAT on this matter and it is hoped that an individual will be identified to fulfill this role in the short term from the DAAT.
2.5 The identified Action Officers have been tasked to develop action plans for their priority areas. A proforma has been designed for this purpose.
(Appendix 1). Each Action Officer is responsible for ensuring that there is an action plan proforma completed for each target by the end of August 1999.
2.6 The aim is to have a complete set of action plans completed and presented to the CDRP at its next meeting in September.
2.7 Action Officers will be invited to attend all CDRP meetings in the future and will provide a written and verbal update on progress with their priority areas.
2.8 Action Officers will be key link officers between the Partnership and individual task groups and it is important that there is a two way flow of communication between the CDRP and task groups delivering on various priority areas of the Strategy.
3.1 That the CDRP note the report and give their full support and co-operation to the Action Officers.
3.2
That each Agency represented on the CDRP should ensure relevant information is provided to Action Officers for Action Plans and that relevant staff within respective agencies are briefed and asked to support Action Officers.To inform the CDRP of the progress made with identifying resources for the effective delivery of the Crime and Disorder Reduction Strategy.
1.1 Over the last few months members of the CDRP have been contacted by letter about their agency's resource contribution to the delivery of the crime and disorder reduction strategy.
1.2 There are six written responses received to date from the following agencies: -
1.3 As yet a significant number of partners have not replied. It was agreed at the last CDRP meeting that Sharmila Gandhi and Joan Simpson would visit individual members and discuss resource issues with them, however, this is clearly going to take some time to achieve.
1.4 The responses received have also indicated that there is very little additional funding being provided into a pooled partnership pot.
1.5 In most cases responses have confirmed mainstream funding which will play a significant part in the delivery of relevant services and the meeting of key targets in the Crime and Disorder Reduction Strategy.
1.6 In other cases, there is a commitment being made to offer personnel and officer time, which is invaluable.
1.7 However, it is clear that the partnership cannot operate effectively without a specific budget for delivering some of the new and innovative measures in the strategy and this needs to be addressed.
1.8 The Council has identified £200,000 as a one off contribution towards the effective delivery of the Crime and Disorder Reduction Strategy.
1.10 The Council has provided this additional resource with a view that it is used to lever further funds from partner agencies. In some cases this has already begun for example, the Health Action Zone has identified two areas in the strategy where joint HAZ funds and Crime and
Disorder funds could enable a target to be met. These areas are in relation to drugs education and environmental clean up campaigns.
1.11 It is important to stress that the £200,000 will be used to ensure that targets in the crime and disorder reduction strategy are met and that in doing so the Council also achieves targets set in its Community Plan (Fighting Crime for a Safer District Priority).
1.12 The CDRP need to also acknowledge that already some new money has been accessed for Bradford to achieve targets in the Burglary priority. This is £120,000 identified for Great Horton/Scholemoor and Buttershaw from the Government's Burglary Reduction Initiative.
1.13 There is a good chance that further funds from the Government's Crime Reduction Programme could be accessed for other areas of the Strategy e.g. CCTV and Domestic Violence.
2.1 Resourcing the Strategy is an issue that needs to be addressed urgently.
2.2 Further thought needs to be given by all partners on what their agencies can contribute to the Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership Pot.
2.3 Members of the Partners need to explore the best ways of maximising current resources and identifying new resources to achieve targets set in the Crime and Disorder Reduction Strategy.
3.1 That the CDRP note the report and the key issues raised within it.
3.2 That a small group of people from the CDRP is identified to assist Sharmila Gandhi and Joan Simpson in this area.
To inform the CDRP about the Government's CCTV Initiative with a view to proposing priority areas for submission.
1.1 The Home Office has announced the launch of a CCTV initiative to help local crime and disorder reduction partnerships to combat crime and disorder and to support the regeneration of housing estates with high crime areas.
1.2 £170m will be made available in the UK over the next 3 years.
1.3 Bids must be from crime and disorder reduction partnerships submitted jointly by the police and local authority partnership representatives. They should support the delivery of local crime and disorder reduction strategies. There is no restriction on the number of applications that may be submitted from each partnership, but bids must be prioritised.
1.4 The initiative will fund up to 100% of the capital costs of CCTV and ancillary equipment. This includes cameras (mobile or fixed) and associated lighting and supports; data transmission infrastructure; command and control systems; CCTV related IT including data analysis software; monitoring stations; data storage and retrieval systems.
1.5 Other capital items, such as improvements to the design of street lighting, may be considered where the bid demonstrates that these are essential for the CCTV system to maximise its potential in reducing crime and disorder.
1.6 There is no requirement for matched funding, but funds levered in from other sources will be given credit during the assessment process, as evidence of commitment by the partnership.
1.7 Running costs or costs incurred for leasing arrangements are NOT
eligible for funding under the initiative. Partnerships will need to demonstrate that running costs will be met from other sources.
1.8 No upper limit has been set for awards.
1.9 The CCTV initiative will support schemes in the following broad categories.-
1.10 In this first round, priority will be given to bids to improve the physical security of car parks. Bids are also encouraged for schemes in residential areas where crime and the fear of crime are threatening to undermine local communities. Approximately half of the available funds will be for schemes in residential areas, subject to the quality of bids received.
1.11 Modernisation of CCTV Schemes - bids under this category will need to demonstrate that the proposal will deliver. significant gains in efficiency and effectiveness. Examples of bids which might be eligible under this category are those for:-
1.12 Car Parks - the bidding guidance emphasises that the Government fully supports the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) Secured Car Parks Scheme. Bids for funding CCTV in car parks will not be restricted to those that are part of a programme of work to achieve secured car park award status. However, bids that are part of such a programme will be scored more highly.
1.13 The application process is in two stages. Outline bids must be submitted by Friday 30 July 1999. Those bidders who are then short listed will be invited to submit fully developed and costed proposals for the final selection process. Winners will be announced in the Autumn.
2.1 CCTV is already widely used in the district as one type of crime prevention/detection tool.
2.2 There are CCTV schemes in Shipley, Bingley and Keighley town centres, however, in Bradford the CCTV scheme mainly covers the Council's car parks and not the public area of the City Centre.
2.3 It is fair to say that as Bradford had one of the first CCTV schemes in the country over a decade ago, the system is now in urgent need for extension and modernisation.
2.4 This was one of the findings of the Council's Best Value review process last year, which looked at the CCTV systems in operation in the District.
3.1 The Bradford District Crime and Disorder Audit identified that the public regarded CCTV as one of the measures that could be taken to not only tackle crime but also address the fear of crime.
3.2 The Audit identified that the majority of vehicle crime takes place in the commercial areas of the District, particularly in the Bradford City Centre area.
3.3 The Audit also identified concerns amongst the business community particularly the retail sector about retail and commercial crime and the impact of this on both their staff and customers.
3.4 The Audit identified that there is a disproportionate level of fear of crime particularly in relation to violent crime such as robbery and mugging and people identified the City Centre as a no-go area particularly in the evenings.
3.5 Under the Key Priority area of Tackling the Fear of Crime and Improving the Quality if Life for all Communities, the Crime and Disorder Reduction Strategy identified a key target to upgrade the CCTV scheme in Bradford City Centre.
3.6 In addition to this it also identified targets to improve co-ordination of current schemes and ensure all operators are properly trained.
4.1 Although there is substantial funding for CCTV in residential areas, it is clear from our Audit that the priority area where CCTV is needed is Bradford City Centre, including all public car parks.
4.2 It is also felt that a bid for the City Centre should include provision for portable cameras, which could be used to minimise and tackle any displacement in outlying areas.
4.3 If there are any residential areas where community groups wish to introduce CCTV as part of a package of measures, then exploratory discussions need to take place urgently with the Council and Police Community Safety Officers before any substantial work for bids is done.
4.4 All potential bids must go through the Partnership and must be ratified by the Council's Chief Executive and Police Divisional Commander for the area.
5.1 That the CDRP agree to take part in the Government's CCTV initiative.
5.2 That the priority area is Bradford City Centre, including all public car parks in the City Centre Area and the provision of portable cameras.
5.3 That residential areas are not a priority area; however,,,iocal partnerships could explore potential residential schemes with the Council and Police Community Safety Officers.
5.3 That CDRP agree to the Council Chief Executive and Police Divisional Commander finalising and ratifying bids for submission.
To inform the CDRP of the Audit Commission's Inspection of the Bradford Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership.
1.1 The CDRP will recall that the Crime and Disorder work in each Local Authority area will be jointly inspected by the Audit Commission and Her Majesty's Inspector of Constabulary (HMIC)
1.2 The Audit Commission's Inspections have now begun and the Council's Community Safety Officer has been contacted by KPMG who will be carrying out a community safety audit.
2.1 Crime and disorder are major concerns for both the public and those agencies involved in maintaining and enhancing the quality of life for communities. Fear of crime heads most national and local public quality of life surveys, and community safety is firmly on the agenda of most public consultation, exercises.
2.2 To date, local authorities have not had a statutory role in developing strategies and action plans to tackle crime and disorder. The new Crime and Disorder Act aims to both formalise approaches and activities and to make local authorities and police forces jointly responsible for formulating strategies that address crime and disorder. The critical role of other key agencies is recognised and the Act also requires health authorities, the probation service and the voluntary sector to be supporting bodies for community safety.
2.3 To implement the Crime and Disorder Act successfully and make a real impact on 'high-risk neighbourhoods', local authorities will need to consider their current arrangements for service organisation and delivery, and their external partnerships.
3.1 The audit will focus on the strategic level and review the Partnership's progress in implementing the Crime and Disorder Act 1998, and suggest ways in which local performance on community safety issues can be improved still further. The audit also requires close co-ordination between the auditors of each member of the Partnership.
3.2 The objectives of the study are to:
The audit will take the form of an overview, with the potential to explore those areas where further development is required by the Partnership at the level of the districtlunitary local authority.
The audit is divided into distinct areas as shown in the following diagram.
|
Set up with Partnership |
Overview Stage: promote self assessment |
|
Audit of HA, Police, County |
check compliance with key elements of Act |
|
Audit of District/Met Authority |
challenge'the problem', C&D audit, consultation and |
|
Report to Partnership |
review one topic |
|
Further detailed audit work |
Main Audit |
|
Report to Partnership or individual body |
Review startegy issues Review tracer topics (burglary, domestic violence, neighbour nuisance, racial harassment, youth disorder, graffiti & vandalism |
Following the overview stage of the audit we will discuss which areas, if any, require further review.
5.1 The review team will include:
5.2 It is expected that the audit will require 15 days.
6.1 Les Cousins and Sharmila Gandhi are the key contacts at the Authority for this review.
Audit Stage |
Date |
Contact |
|
Planning meeting with Authority |
May-99 |
David Blanchard |
|
Planning meeting with Partnership |
Jun-99 |
David Blanchard |
|
Undertake fieldwork |
June-August 1999 |
David Blanchard |
|
Feedback of results to Authority |
Late August 1999 |
David Blanchard |
|
Feedback of results to Partnership |
Sept/October 1999 |
David Blanchard |
8.1 That the CDRP note the report.
This report outlines the Council's approach to addressing the training implications of the Crime and Disorder Act and proposes the development of a long - term shared Training Strategy across the partner organisations
1.1 Section 17 of the Crime and Disorder Act will impact on the whole Council as it places a Duty on the Council to consider crime and disorder implications when setting policy and delivering services . it is important to ensure that all staff are aware of Section 17 and of how they can assist in its implementation .
1.2 On 18 November 1998 Community Safety Sub - Committee gave full support to the training and development of staff and elected members in relation to Section 17 .
1.3 It is equally important that staff receive adequate information and training to enable them to implement other relevant sections of the Act.
1.4 In the district's Crime and Disorder Reduction Strategy various targets have been set for the training of specific groups of employee in all the partner agencies .
1.5 Some training is already taking place in pockets across the Council but as yet there has been no corporate approach to identifying and resourcing training for this key corporate issue .
2. The Council's Approach
2.1 The Council intends to audit its training needs and provision in relation to the Act and to do this a meeting of key players is being organised . The objectives of the audit are to :
2.2 The outcome of the audit will be a comprehensive training programme covering the following areas
2.3 Orders and themes specific to the Act - Section 17 , Anti - Social Behaviour Orders , Sex Offenders Orders , truancy, Youth Justice monitoring and evaluation in relation to Sections 5 and 6 of the Act.
2.4 Related Issues - Personal safety , designing out crime , domestic violence , community development, evidence gathering , issues around CCT and surveillance..
3.1 The Council would like to propose that a similar audit takes place in our partner agencies .
3.2 Key players from each agency could then meet to look at their respective strengths, good practice in delivery and gaps in provision with a view to developing shared training that would use resources in the most appropriate and effective way.
3.3 In the long - term we propose the development of a shared Training Strategy across the partner organisations .
4.1 The Partnership supports an audit of training needs and current training provision in relation to the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 in both the Council and partner agencies
4.2 A central point be identified to lead the co,- ordination of information gathered from the audit and the development of a shared Training Strategy.
4.3 Further reports are brought back to the Partnership on the progress of training activities ; the outcomes of the audit in 3 months and a draft Training Strategy in 6 months .
To agree protocols for reports being received by the CDRP.
1.1 All main agenda items should have brief supporting reports.
1.2 Reports should be succinct and kept brief. Recommended length of report two sides of A4.
1.3 Reports should state the Purpose of Report, set out some background information, key points and clear recommendations.
1.4 Apart from the Purpose of the Report, all other sections should be clearly numbered.
1.5 Reports need to be submitted to the Council's Committee Secretariat at City Hall (lan Brown) no later than seven days before a Partnership meeting.
1.6 All reports will need.1LO be verified with either Sharmila Gandhi the Council's Community Safety Policy Officer or Chief Inspector Joan Simpson before being sent to Committee Secretariat.
2.1 That the CDRP endorse the proposed format of reports for CDRP meetings.
2.2 That an example of this format be circulated to all partners with the minutes of this meeting.
This media protocol is designed to cover community safety partnership work that is undertaken by local authorities, West Yorkshire Police and other agencies under the provisions of the Crime and Disorder Act. It is intended to extend the partnership approach into the area of media relations, promoting unity but recognising the different roles of the various partners. It builds on existing good practice.
Working in partnership, we will: