‘It’s a Jungle out there’ – Understanding Police Performance in PCC World

1. Does anyone understand this blimmin’ Police Performance paper from the Force? ‘It’s a Jungle out there’ – Understanding Police Performance in PCC World Graham Hooper, Chief Executive Kent Police Authority

2. Police Performance in PCC World? First, some things this presentation isn’t: An ‘expert’ speaking – just a bloke that wrestles (like you) with this subject, that’s all. Note the question mark in the title above – I have no special insight into how PCCs will handle this area (but I will make some guesses). I’m not telling any PCC’s office how they should monitor police performance – your call.

3. Police Performance in PCC World? But before we dive into PCC’s, first, let’s ask how this lot did in oversight/’hold to account’ of police performance? (notional Police Authority – England & Wales)

4. Police Performance in PCC World? The good things police authorities did in the police performance domain Within bounds, they set challenging targets for their forces Were assiduous in monitoring progress of forces in meeting targets – didn’t just accept ‘good news’. They ‘sniffed out’ stuff They helped create a focus (or greater focus) on some important areas of policing

5. The good things police authorities did in the police performance domain Acted a ‘critical friend’ (generally!) ensuring there was rigour without hostility/confrontation Authorities didn’t accept performance data on a single dimension (e.g. just against Policing Plan targets). They would overlay against past years’ performance, MSF, etc Police Performance in PCC World?

6. Police Performance in PCC World? The not so good things about police authorities involvement in police performance It is often retrospective lacking immediacy and the ability to trouble-shoot performance issues as they emerged. Members do not necessarily have the expertise to scrutinise police performance (nor always do officers either!) They gleefully joined the world of performance ‘obsessionists ’ – did they lose sight of what is was all about?

7. The not so good things about police authorities involvement in police performance Initially performance scrutiny by authorities was not sufficiently outcome focussed – driven by quantity, time and cost not so much by (trickier) quality of service dimension. Perhaps never fully got to grips with value for money and productivity indicators. Police Performance in PCC World?

8. The not so good things about police authorities involvement in police performance Whilst better at monitoring and challenging performance in volume crime domain (recorded crime, ASB, sanction detections, etc), they were less effective in the areas of central operations and protective service areas. Ditto for partnership areas. Police Performance in PCC World?

9. Police Performance in PCC World? The Unspoken Issues Were/are police authorities given the full picture in this domain? Have police authorities ‘moved on’ over police performance? Or are they stuck (and thereby making forces stuck) in the old police performance world? Failure to recognise the complexities of crime and its causes and a failure to challenge police force rhetoric on performance. Chief: ‘we’ve reduced crime by 9%’. Have the police done that on their own?!

10. Police Performance in PCC World Before I speculate on a PCC performance world, what’s happened to police performance in the last two years:

11. What has the national ‘target’ ‘Cut Crime’ done to us all? Police Performance in PCC World Excel spreadsheets, IQuanta, PPAF, Balanced Scorecards… give me, give me

12. Police Performance in PCC World We’re the walking dead; we’re junkies deprived forever of our fix; we’re a rudder without a ship! We still can’t believe what the Home Office did when they wiped away our police performance world and replaced it with just………… CUT CRIME

13. Police Performance in PCC World What’s been going on since? Two things: Bit of gunfight to fill the vacuum left by the sweeping away of national police performance targets between ………..

14. Police Performance in PCC World Filling the vacuum? Crime Maps & HMIC’s Crime Comparator

15. Police Performance in PCC World 2. Performance Managing! Have things really changed that much since ? Bit of rationalisation here and there but still an awful lot of performance indicators and targets out there.

16. Police Performance in PCC World Other things we’ve seen since 2010 ‘Cut Crime’ The introduction by some forces of a ‘Common Statement of Performance’ – an attempt to explain to the public all the demands & responsibilities upon the police and place raw statistics in context. A drive to better represent police performance by way of policing outcomes – as being developed on Crime Maps and through forces/authorities blended approach to performance – now including things like victim and public satisfaction levels.

17. Police Performance in PCC World Other things we’ve seen since 2010 ‘Cut Crime’ A determined attempt to go beyond detections – all outcomes count (could this spell the end to ‘detections’ as we have known and loved them for so long?) Placing police performance in the context of risk and harm Work towards creating crime groups to delineate the kind of ‘victim’

18. What of police performance in a future PCC world? Some thoughts………….. 1. Short-Term v Long-Term Despite three year policing plans many authorities focus on year-to-year performance comparisons Performance fire-fighting Will a PCC take a longer view? Four-year cycles? Police Performance in PCC World

19. A Future PCC world? 2. (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction Will satisfaction (even confidence!) emerge stronger under PCC’s, than it exists under police authorities? Does satisfaction with policing = satisfaction with the PCC? Will not this be the a diagnostic for the popularity of the PCC? Police Performance in PCC World

20. A Future PCC world? 3. Sorting the Wheat from the Chaff What is management information and what is material that should be used to hold the forceto account? Will PCCs be able to manage data/information to conduct strategic oversight? What will PCCs make of the simplistic ‘cut crime’ mantra? How much below that headline will they want to go or be prepared to go? Police Performance in PCC World

21. A Future PCC world? 4. Banishing police stats as an end in themselves Both police authorities and forces have both been guilty of focussing on performance stats as an end in themselves. By looking at the figures, we should know the right questions to ask about the service delivery and business processes. Too often police authorities stop short of this. Police Performance in PCC World

22. A Future PCC world? 4. Banishing police stats as an end in themselves (cont’d) Authorities spend a lot of time trawling through data reports and asking why something is red or green, or why it is 22.2% rather than 22.3%. In reality we need to be better at getting beyond the figures and into what the figures really mean. Perhaps PCCs will do this? Police Performance in PCC World

23. A Future PCC world? 5. Force & Local Focus PCCs will encourage a greater focus on local performance issues rather than pan-force issues. In the minds of the electorate, the only crime issues that matter are those in their local neighbourhood - and those that directly affect them. Police Performance in PCC World

24. A Future PCC world? 5. Force & Local Focus (cont’d) Force-wide performance improvements have little relevance to them. PCCs may wish a two tier approach to their police and crime plans that reflect holistic targets, as well as local geographic performance objectives that relate more to the specific priorities and issues of that locality. Police Performance in PCC World

25. Police Performance in PCC World Hoops Handy Hints (take ‘em or leave ‘em) Get yourself direct access to your force data systems This will enable you to decide what you want, not what the force want to give you This will give you the instant, contemporaneous picture of force performance - This will remove any worries you may have about the ‘correct picture’

26. Police Performance in PCC World Hoops’ Handy Hints (take ‘em or leave ‘em) Get yourself some expertise – people who really ‘get it’ Your PCC may be ambivalent to this area: find ways to make this an understandable world for them Remember to keep looking at the national picture (we have commissioned some work from NPIA / College of Policing) There is a chance to look afresh at police performance…seize the opportunity

27. Am setting up an APACE Police Performance Working Group – anyone interested in helping out get in touch. Will try and create some new guidance (a racy ‘insiders guide’ to police performance). We may set up our own APACE standing group on this subject. Will try and establish bi-lateral relations with others on police performance through this new group. Police Performance in PCC World

28. Crime in multi-story car parks….it’s just wrong on all levels!!!! Police Performance in PCC World Email: graham.hooper@kent.pnn.police.uk Tel: 01622 604488 Mob: 07540 366482