Performance and Measurement

Summary

In 2006, Essex Police became lead force for the policing of counter-terrorism in the Eastern Region. A regional co-ordination board leads on building the capacity of the regional counter-terrorism unit. Essex Police is also continuing its active contribution to collaboration-based initiatives within the Region in areas such as IT, transport and scientific policing. Having secured Government funding around Protective Services, Essex and Kent became one of thirteen demonstrator sites in July 2007, to develop and integrate marine capability, air support and roads policing (Automated Number Plate Recognition technology).

Essex was graded as ‘meets the standard’ for Major Crime in the 2007/08 HMIC inspection. Essex’s role in the provision of support and specialist resources to other forces is noteworthy, particularly the timely and significant response to the Suffolk Serial Murders which included a Murder Investigation Team and substantial uniform resources. The inspection assessment identified the force as demonstrating a maturing process in its approach to tackling major crime. For Neighbourhood Policing and Citizen Focus, the force has been graded as ‘meets the standard’. Neighbourhood Policing is embedded, with Neighbourhood Policing Teams engaging with communities and actively solving problems with them. The force is developing Citizen Focus at an adequate pace and building on already good performance from customer facing areas such as call management.

Overall, performance in 2007/08 was good, the majority of indicators improving on 2006/07. All areas of user satisfaction have improved significantly, along with fear of crime. Offences brought to justice rose from 30.7% to 34.2%, the sanction detection rate increased from 29.5% to 32.4%, serious violent and acquisitive crime decreased, and people killed and seriously injured in road collisions fell by 9.2%. Police staff sickness is subject to a great deal of committed work by HR Divisions, and Essex Police Authority. Attention is also focused upon the satisfaction of victims of racist incidents, and service users from visible Black and Ethnic Minority groups.

The force set two local priorities for 2007/08: reducing Anti Social Behaviour incidents, and increasing the percentage of switchboard calls answered within standard (30 seconds). The force exceeded its locally set stretch target for ASB reduction and met the local improvement target for phone calls.

The 2006/07 HMIC assessments revealed an area of concern around the management of domestic violence, predominantly on backlogs of risk assessment forms and low staffing levels in specialist domestic violence teams. Additional administrative staff have now been recruited and backlogs reduced. A review of staffing levels within domestic abuse hate crime units has also been carried out and established posts filled. A recent revisit by HMIC identified the force was managing risk more effectively and it is now delivering an acceptable level of service.

Greater accessibility to policing services and improvements in service delivery have been achieved by increased opening hours, and the provision of ‘one stop shops’. Neighbourhood policing teams now cover 144 neighbourhood areas. Each has a PC or community support officer as a single point of contact with details fully accessible via the Force website, or by telephoning the new non-emergency telephone number.

Essex is well positioned to meet future strategic challenges including the impact of longer term planned development within the Thames Gateway and Stansted/M11 corridor. Planning is well underway to prepare for the impact of the 2012 Olympic Games, with two event locations which Essex Police will directly support. Under Operation Apex, Essex Police has set itself a 3-5 year target to increase the number of police officers by 600 and reduce annual crime to below 100,000 (a reduction of over 15%). Considerable work has already started in moving towards achievement of these targets.