Mixed Economy Policing Falkirk Priority Crime Unit Superintendent

Mixed Economy Policing Falkirk Priority Crime Unit Superintendent Gavin Buist Superintendent Robbie Mc. Gregor

The Role of a Typical Police Officer Public Calls Volume Crime Community Focus Anti. Social Behaviour

Investigating Crime Crime

Investigating Crime Of all the tasks associated with volume crime investigation: • 15% require the use of coercive police powers • 85% don’t • All are very time-consuming if done properly • All are currently impeded by other demands

Workforce Inefficiencies So: • • • Service to the public was suffering Investigations were not particularly efficient Performance in certain areas could have been improved

Research and Good Practice • Surrey Police – mixed economy models • NPIA Workforce Development Team The start of a long relationship……….

Towards a New Business Model • Move from ‘crime report’ focus to a ‘task’ focus • Disaggregate crime investigations into their component parts • Entirely new approach to volume crime investigation • Match staff and core skills to tasks • Geographical task bundling to maximise efficiencies

Planning Team • • Area Commander DCI Crime Operations Senior Manager HRD Unison Scottish Police Federation Corporate Management representative Project Manager

Consultation • Falkirk Area Command Management Team • Police Board • Local Officers – focus groups and briefing • Local Community – focus groups of users • Force Policy Group • Local Media And ongoing liaison with Surrey and NPIA

New Police Staff Roles POLICE INVESTIGATIVE ASSISTANT Activities – a range of investigative tasks, including – – – Statement-Taking Victim/witness liaison House-to-house Interviewing Collecting and identifying productions CCTV uplift NO POLICE OR COERCIVE POWERS

New Police Staff Roles POLICE TEAM CO-ORDINATOR Activities – Update/search records & databases – Make appointments, schedule and allocate tasks to police officers and police staff – First line of victim & witness contact/feedback – Liaison with other departments and agencies BACK OFFICE SUPPORT POST

Structure 1 DS 4 DCs (who act as Team leaders) 4 PCs (who support the DCs) 2 Team Co-ordinators 8 Investigative Assistants

Structure Team Leader Support PC Team Coordinator Investigative Assistant

What Have We Achieved? • • • New and operational role for police staff New career opportunities within the Force Realising practical efficiencies in tasking and task-bundling Fully integrated and dynamic Team Police staff fully accepted by colleagues and Divisional personnel • 18 staff carrying the previous workload of 100 police officers • Flexibility – police staff investigating serious crimes • Uniform officers can be more visible in communities.

Key Outcomes • Group 3 Volume crime detections in Falkirk up 11% compared with same period last year; Group 4 up by 4% • Much more scope for targeted high profile police patrols • More people surveyed think Falkirk area is a safe place • Quality of service improved……

Service delivery outcomes

“The Scotsman” 11 July 2008

The SIO’s view Having had the services of Fraser and Anne for a fortnight, I have to say that I have been consistently impressed by their commitment and dedication in the face of a high volume of work. They certainly took a great burden away from their police officer colleagues and I would be happy to work with them again in the same circumstances.

The politician’s view “Civilians don’t sign up to the level of commitment that a sworn police officer does. They don’t necessarily have the same dedication. It’s frightening and astonishing that civilians can be carrying out the job of police officers in such serious crimes. “Police officers sometimes have to carry out fairly menial tasks. Sometime that requires them to do jobs that, yes, could be carried out by civilians” Mr XXXXXXX, 2009 Labour MSP, quoted in The Scotsman, 11 July