Hampshire County Council Hampshire Police and Crime Panel (Statutory Joint Committee) Meeting

The Monitoring Officer to the Panel welcomed Members to the meeting.

Apologies were received from:

• Councillor Stuart Bailey, Hart District Council
• Councillor Tonia Craig, Eastleigh Borough Council
• Councillor Andrew Joy, Hampshire County Council
• Councillor Phillip Lashbrook, Test Valley Borough Council
• Councillor Matthew Magee, Southampton City Council
• Councillor Ken Muschamp, Rushmoor District Council

Members were able to disclose to the meeting any disclosable pecuniary interest they may have in any matter on the agenda for the meeting, where that interest is not already entered in their appointing authority’s register of interests, and any other pecuniary or non-pecuniary interests in any such matter that Members may wish to disclose.

No declarations were made.

Members received a report from the Democratic Services Officer to the Panel detailing the proposed co-option of two local authority co-opted members and two independent co-opted members.

Councillor Beavis provided an overview of the recruitment process undertaken for the two Independent Co-opted Member vacancies. Members heard that:

·         The Panel had undertaken a robust and transparent process with the vacancies advertised on the Hampshire Police and Crime Panel website, Hampshire County Council online job website and social media, as well as being sent directly to more than 100 key stakeholders. A press release was also sent to media outlets across Hampshire and Isle of Wight, a number of whom had featured the story with a link to apply.

·         In total 14 applications for the two roles were received.

·         A cross-party selection panel independently shortlisted applications for interview, scoring the participants against the competencies and skills listed within the application pack, before collectively agreeing to bring four candidates forward for interview.

·         All four candidates were asked a number of questions at interview relating to the responsibilities of the Hampshire Police and Crime Panel, and the skills, knowledge and experience they could offer, with the two candidates proposed for appointment demonstrating the requirements to a very high standard.

Each of the proposed nominees were invited to introduce themselves, giving a brief overview of their background and interest in the Panel.

RESOLVED:

·         That the Panel notes its Membership for the 2021/22 municipal year, as laid out in Table 2 of this report.

·         That Councillor Tony Jones and Councillor Matthew Renyard are appointed to the Hampshire Police and Crime Panel, as Local Authority Co-opted Members representing the Labour Group.

·         That a nomination for the vacant Conservative additional local authority Member be brought to the next meeting of the Panel on 29 October.

·         That (subject to the appointments proposed above) the Panel notes the Panel Membership is, at the current time, politically proportionate for the purpose of the balanced appointment objective as outlined in Table 3.

·         That Mr Dave Stewart and Mrs Shirley Young are appointed as independent co-opted members of the Hampshire Police and Crime Panel until the annual meeting of the Panel in 2024.

The process of electing a Chair, which was set out in the Panel Arrangements, was explained and it was noted that appointment would be for a period of one year, until the annual meeting in 2022.

Councillor Simon Bound was nominated by Councillor Steele and seconded by Councillor Cartwright as the sole nominee duly elected.

Councillor Simon Bound in the Chair.

The Chair called for nominations for the position of Vice Chair of the Panel, an appointment which would be for one year, until the annual meeting in 2022.

David Stewart, Independent Co-opted Member, was nominated by Councillor Beavis and seconded by Councillor Cartwright and as the sole nominee duly elected.

The minutes from the 12 March 2021 meeting were confirmed as a correct record.

No questions or deputations were received by the Panel on this occasion.

Being the first meeting of the Panel since the election in May 2021, the Chairman welcomed the new Police and Crime Commissioner, along with both new and returning Members of the Panel. The Chairman also acknowledged the contribution made by those Members who had not returned to the Panel this year, including the Panel’s previous independent co-opted Members Bob Purkiss and Michael Coombes and former Vice-Chairman Jan Warwick.

The Chair invited announcements from the Commissioner who thanked the Panel for welcoming her to this first meeting and provided a overview of her past experience and policy commitments. The Commissioner explained that she was committed to being open and communicative, understood the value of partnership and looked forward to working alongside the Panel as a key stakeholder.

Members heard that the Commissioner had undertaken a crime survey, prior to being elected, which had received over 3000 responses. This survey had highlighted that policing visibility and police officer numbers were key public priorities and the Commissioner had sought assurance from the Chief Constable that efforts were on track to have 600 more police officers recruited by 2023. It was heard that Hampshire Constabulary had 5426 staff in total, including 3033 officers. Additionally the force had 185 voluntary special constables, and the Commissioner had met with the Constabulary to look at how these numbers could be increased.

The Commissioner advised Members that some high harm crime types had fallen in number over the last 12 months as a result of the pandemic, however those related to drugs, public order offenses and the carrying off offensive weapons had increased, and tackling this would be both an operational and strategic priority with funding being sought and provided by the Commissioner.

Members heard that the Commissioner had taken a seat on the Local Criminal Justice Board (LCJB), with a view to chairing the board. Criminal Justice was a key component of the role of the PCC and the Commissioner was seeking opportunities to meet with partners to explore and understand current issues, including court backlogs and rape conviction rates.

Other key priorities for the Commissioner would include tackling anti-social behaviour and rural crime, preventing young people from criminalisation and a review of the 101 service and estates strategy. Members heard that the Commissioner’s overarching vision was that Hampshire and the Isle of Wight would be two of the safest counties to live in and that these priorities would be outlined within the Police and Crime Plan, the draft of which would be brought to a future meeting of the Panel

The Commissioner further explained that she would focus on being highly visible to partners and to the public, helping residents to understand the value of the PCC role and what will be delivered for their precept contributions.

The Commissioner invited questions from Members and in response it was heard that:

·         The Commissioner had identified and opportunity to greater engage residents in the value of the 101 service and had asked the Constabulary to identify means to utilise the Contact Management Platform (CMP) to provide feedback on actions taken to those who had reported crimes.

·         The Commissioner would be working with local authorities to develop solutions for local safety and crime concerns.

·         Whilst digital and social media engagement would be key in enhancing the PCC’s visibility to residents, other engagement opportunities were being planned for those who had restricted or no online access.

·         Community Safety Partnership chairs and local cabinet members had and would be invited to attend local visits alongside the Commissioner. The Commissioner had also been engaging with district commanders from across the policing area, in order to better understand local issues and concerns.

The Chairman introduced the Panel’s draft annual report for the 2020/21 municipal year.

RESOLVED:

That the Panel receive and agree the draft annual report.

That, following the meeting and addition of a foreword from the Chairman, the final report be published.

Members received a report from the Democratic Support Officer to the Panel detailing the activities of the Complaints Sub-Committee over the last 12 calendar months, relating to a period when Michael Lane was in office as the previous Police and Crime Commissioner.

The Democratic Services Officer to the Panel highlighted, as outlined within the report, that 10 potential complaints had been received during the period, which represented an increase on the previous 12 months, however of the 10 potential complaints received only two had been recorded as such.

RESOLVED:

That the annual complaints report is noted.

Members received a report from the finance officer to the Panel which monitored the budget for 2020/21, in advance of agreeing the proposed budget for 2022/23.

RESOLVED:

That the Panel

•     Note the final financial position for 2020/21.

•     Note the current performance against the budget for the current financial year.

•     Agree the revised budget for 2021/22.

•     Agree the proposed budget for the panel for 2022/23, subject to confirmation of the Government grant for 2022/23.

Members received a report from the Democratic Support Officer to the Panel setting out the required membership of the Panel’s working groups for consideration and appointment.

Members were invited to express an interest in membership of the Panels working groups and Complaints Sub-Committee. Nominations were noted by the Democratic Support Officer, who explained that following the meeting the final membership of the working groups would be agreed by the Chairman and confirmed to Members in writing.

RESOLVED:

That the Panel agree, subject to confirmation from the Chairman, the final membership of the Complaints Sub-Committee, Police and Crime Plan working group, Finance working group and Equality and Diversity Working Group for the 2021/22 municipal year.

Members received a report from the Democratic Service Officer to the Panel outlining an update to the Panel’s Confirmation Hearing Protocol.

Members heard that the update constituted some minor grammatical changes, following from the Panel’s previous review of the policy in 2017.

RESOLVED:

That the Panel agrees the updated Confirmation Hearing Protocol.

Members received a report from the Democratic Support Officer to the Panel setting out the proposed work programme for the Panel.

RESOLVED:

That the work programme is agreed.