Category: National policing

PCC Lisa Townsend welcomes new Probation Service

Posted on | by Surrey PCC

Probation services delivered by private businesses across England and Wales have been merged with the National Probation Service this week to provide a new unified public Probation Service.

The Service will provide closer supervision of offenders and home visits to better protect children and partners, with Regional Directors responsible for making probation more effective and consistent across England and Wales.

Probation services manage individuals on a community order or licence following their release from prison, and provide unpaid work or behaviour change programmes that take place in the community.

The change forms part of the Government’s commitment to grow greater public confidence in the Criminal Justice System.

It comes after Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Probation concluded that the previous model of delivering Probation through a mix of public and private organisations was ‘fundamentally flawed’.

In Surrey, partnership between the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner and the Kent, Surrey and Sussex Community Rehabilitation Company has played a key role in reducing reoffending since 2016.

Craig Jones, OPCC Policy and Commissioning Lead for Criminal Justice said KSSCRC were “a true vision of what a Community Rehabilitative Company should be” but recognised that this was not the case for all services provided across the country.

PCC Lisa Townsend welcomed the change, that will support the existing work of the PCC’s Office and partners to continue to drive down reoffending in Surrey:

“These changes to the Probation Service will strengthen our partnership work to reduce reoffending, supporting real change by individuals who experience the Criminal Justice System in Surrey.

“It’s really important that this retains a focus on the value of community sentences that we’ve championed over the last five years, including our Checkpoint and Checkpoint Plus schemes that have a tangible impact on an individual’s likelihood of reoffending.

“I welcome new measures that will ensure that high risk offenders will be monitored more closely, as well as providing a greater control over the impact that probation has on the victims of crime.”

Surrey Police said it will continue to work closely with the Office of the PCC, the National Probation Service and the Surrey Probation Service to manage offenders released into the local community.

Surrey PCC: Amendments to Domestic Abuse Bill are a welcome boost for survivors

Posted on | by Surrey PCC

The Police and Crime Commissioner for Surrey David Munro has welcomed fresh amendments towards a new set of domestic abuse laws saying they will improve the crucial support available to survivors.

The draft Domestic Abuse Bill contains new measures to enhance the response to domestic abuse by police forces, specialist services, local authorities and the courts.

Areas of the bill include criminalising more forms of abuse, greater support for those affected and help for survivors to get justice

The Bill, which is currently being considered by the House of Lords, had obligated councils to provide support to survivors and their families in places of refuge and other accommodation.

The PCC signed a petition led by SafeLives and Action for Children that urged the Government to widen this support to include community based services. Community services such as helplines account for around 70% of the assistance provided to those affected

A new amendment will now obligate local authorities to assess the impact of the Bill on their relationships and funding for all domestic abuse services. It includes a statutory review by Domestic Abuse Commissioner, that will further outline the role of community services.

The PCC said it was a welcome step that recognised the enormous impact domestic abuse has on individuals and families.

Community based services provide a confidential listening service and can offer a range of practical advice and therapeutic support for adults and children. As part of a coordinated response by local partners, they play a fundamental part in halting the cycle of abuse and empowering victims to live free from harm.

PCC David Munro said: “Physical and emotional abuse can have a devastating impact on survivors and families. I wholeheartedly welcome the steps outlined in this Bill to improve the support we can provide, whilst taking the toughest possible action against perpetrators.

“We owe it to every person affected by domestic abuse to be there with quality support when and where they need it, including for those who may find it harder to access refuge – for example individuals with disabilities, those with substance misuse problems, or those with older children.

Head of Policy and Commissioning for the PCC’s office Lisa Herrington said, “Victims need to know they are not alone. Community based services are there to listen without judgement and we know this is what survivors value the most. This includes helping survivors to flee safely, and for longer term support when they feel able to return to independent living.

“We work with partners across the county to achieve this, so it is essential that this coordinated response is supported.”

“Talking about abuse takes tremendous courage. Often a victim won’t want to engage with criminal justice agencies – they just want the abuse to stop.”

In 2020/21 the Office of the PCC provided close to £900,000 in funding to support domestic abuse organisations, including extra money to support both refuges and community services to overcome the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic.

At the height of first lockdown, this included working with Surrey County Council and partners to rapidly establish new refuge space for 18 families.

Since 2019, increased funding from the PCC’s office has also paid for more domestic abuse caseworkers in Surrey Police.

From April, the extra money raised by the PCC’s council tax rise means a further £600,000 will be made available to support victims in Surrey, including through domestic abuse services.

Anyone who is worried about, or affected by domestic abuse is encouraged to contact Surrey Police via 101, online or using social media. Always dial 999 in an emergency. Support is available by contacting the Your Sanctuary helpline 01483 776822 9am-9pm every day or by visiting the Healthy Surrey website.

asian female police contact staff

PCC calls for government to consider police staff funding

Posted on | by Surrey PCC

The Police and Crime Commissioner for Surrey David Munro is calling on the government to consider funding for police staff alongside the rollout of an extra 20,000 police officers nationally.

The PCC has written to the Chancellor Rishi Sunak outlining his concerns that underfunding staff roles will result in “reverse civilianisation” where police officers will end up doing these jobs in years to come.

The Commissioner said modern policing was ‘a team effort’ requiring staff in specialist positions and the Police Funding Settlement, published in Parliament earlier this month, did not recognise their valuable contribution.

He urged the Chancellor to consider funding for police staff in the next Comprehensive Spending Review (CSR) which is expected later this year.

Around £415m of government funding in 2021/22 will pay for the recruitment and training of the next tranche of new police officers, but is not extended to police staff. Surrey Police’s share will mean they will receive funding for a further 73 officers over the next year.

In addition, the PCC’s recently agreed council tax precept rise for the next financial year will mean an extra 10 officer and 67 operational support roles will also be added to the ranks.

PCC David Munro said: “Surrey residents tell me they want to see more police offices in their communities so of course I welcome the government’s commitment to adding 20,000 nationwide. But we need to make sure we get the balance right.

“Over the years specialist staff have been employed to ensure that officers can spend more time doing what they do best – being on the streets and catching criminals – and yet the valuable contribution these staff make does not seem to recognised in the settlement. The skills of a warranted officer are very different to those of, for example, a contact centre operative or analyst.

“The Treasury is rightly calling for police forces to become more efficient and here in Surrey we have delivered £75m in savings over the last 10 years and are budgeting for a further £6m in the year ahead.

“However I am concerned that with all the focus on police officer numbers, future savings can only come from reductions in police staff. This will mean over time that trained warranted officers will be required to do roles previously undertaken by police staff for which they are ill-equipped and not really what they joined the Force for in the first place.

“This “reverse civilianisation” is very wasteful not only of resources but also of talent.”

In the same letter, the PCC also urged that the opportunity was taken in the next CSR to review the central grant system used to allocate funds to police forces across England and Wales.

In 2021/22, Surrey residents will pay 55%of the total funding for Surrey Police through council tax, compared with 45% from Central Government (£143m and £119m).

The PCC said the current formula based on the central government grant system left Surrey short-changed: “Using the current grant system as the basis for allocation puts us at an unfair disadvantage. A more equitable distribution would be based on total net revenue budget; putting Surrey Police on a fair footing with other forces of a similar size.”

Read the full letter to the Chancellor here.

PCC welcomes commitment to strengthening policing service following government settlement for 2021/22

Posted on | by Surrey PCC

The Police and Crime Commissioner David Munro has welcomed this year’s government settlement for policing announced yesterday saying it will enable Surrey Police to maintain its recruitment of extra officers and staff.

The Home Office today revealed their funding package for 2021/22 which includes over £400 million to recruit 20,000 extra officers nationally by 2023.

The combination of last year’s council tax precept in Surrey and the officer uplift promised by government meant Surrey Police have been able to strengthen their establishment by 150 officers and staff during 2020/21.

Yesterday’s settlement gives PCC’s the flexibility to raise a maximum of £15 a year on an average Band D property through the precept for the next financial year. This equates to around 5.5% across all council tax property bands and would provide an additional £7.4m for policing in Surrey.

Once the Commissioner has finalised his precept proposal in the coming days – he will be consulting with the Surrey public in early January.

However the PCC said he remains troubled that the funding formula used to calculate the settlement remains unchanged meaning once again Surrey has received the lowest level of grant of all forces.

To read the Home Office announcement – click here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/police-to-receive-more-than-15-billion-to-fight-crime-and-recruit-more-officers

PCC David Munro said: “The settlement announcement does show the government remains committed to strengthening our police service which is good news for our communities in Surrey.

“We obviously need to take stock and work through the finer details of today’s announcement and I will be working with the Chief Constable in the coming days to finalise my precept proposal for the next financial year.

“I will then be consulting with the public in January and I’m really keen to hear the views of residents on both my proposal and the police service in this county.

“Whilst the settlement does represent good news, I remain disappointed that Surrey residents will in effect continue to pay a larger proportion of the cost of their policing than anyone else in the country.

“I believe the police funding formula is fundamentally flawed and I wrote to the Home Secretary earlier this year urging the need for a root-and-branch review to make it a fairer system. I will continue to press that point over coming months to fight for fairer funding for policing in this county.”