Agenda and minutes

Apologies had been received from Paula Morrison and Nigel Davies.

It was agreed that the minutes of the previous meeting be approved.  

CSD 16040

It was noted on the Matters Arising report that the new DV Commissioner would update the Group at the March meeting.

Victoria Roberts had been appointed as the new Interim DV and VAWG Commissioner. Ms Roberts was setting up and preparing for the first meeting of the Domestic Violence Forum. This was scheduled for 22^nd April 2016, and invitations would be sent out in due course. The Forum would assist in developing a DV Strategy for the Borough. The Group had a Vice Chairman, but the post of Chairman was still vacant.

Ms Roberts referred to the DHR (Domestic Homicide Review) and subsequent recommendations. 

Domestic Homicide Reviews are governed by Section 9 of the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act, 2004. The guidance states that a DHR means a review of the circumstances in which the death of a person aged 16 or over has, or appears to have resulted from violence, abuse or neglect by:

• A person to whom he/she was related or with whom he/she was or had been in an intimate personal relationship, or

• A member of the same household as himself/herself.

A Review is conducted to see what lessons can be learned from the death.

The Group noted that any recommendations that arose from the DHR, would need to be signed off by the Home Office Domestic Homicide Review Quality Assurance Panel. The Group were informed that a meeting was taking place the same afternoon--between Ms Roberts and the Deputy Borough Police Commander. This was with the aim of setting up a Task and Finish Group to implement the DHR and Home Office recommendations. It was anticipated that any policies recommended by the task and finish group would be looked at by both the Safer Bromley Partnership, and also by the Children’s Board.

The Deputy Borough Commander was keen to clarify where the task and finish group should report into. He was of the view that the DHR recommendations were extensive, and that the required changes were likely to be achieved by a gradual process. Ms Roberts agreed with this, and stated that the work of the task and finish group was important, and should not be delayed. The DHR recommendations would be incorporated into the Strategic Aims of the Group. It was noted in this case, that there was no contact or involvement with other agencies, and that the DHR recommendations had been published on the web.

The Matters Arising report had also noted that an update on New Psychoactive Substances would be brought to the March meeting. It was still the case that LBB were waiting to review the situation when the new legislation had been passed. Currently there was very little front line supply, if any. It may be the case that the supply was going underground. This being the case, there was no action plan being developed at this time. The main problem currently was with the supply and use of nitrous oxide. This was freely available online.

Mr  ...  view the full minutes text for item 66.

The Borough Commander commenced his update by notifying the Committee of the current MOPAC 7 crime figures:

The latest figures for Bromley Police revealed that over the five year period commencing 2011/12, overall crime over the MOPAC 7 range of targeted crime areas had decreased by 17.4%; this was against a 20% target reduction. At the time of writing the overall MET reduction was 18.10%.

The Borough Commander (BC) was pleased with the progress that had been made in reducing the number of criminal damage cases, and asked the Committee to note that the volume of cases of Theft of Motor Vehicles had increased because individuals were becoming more aware that the current MET policy was not to give chase in these circumstances.

Bromley Police were awaiting an update on possible policy changes subsequent to the election of the new London Mayor. The Chairman was hoping for a refocus on risk based crime, particularly domestic abuse and other sexual offences. Bromley Police would be adhering to the District Ward Officer and Local Policing Model for the near future.

It was expected that Bromley Police would continue to move towards a Basic Command Unit (BCU) structure. The Police Commissioner had recently announced that there would be a move to a BCU model of policing, which would not be Borough based. The number of BCU’s had not been decided, but it was likely to be in the region of 10-16. There would not be a final decision on this until the Mayoral elections were completed. Each BCU would have 4 portfolios, which would be Response, Neighbourhood Policing, Investigation, and Protecting Vulnerable People. It was the case that no decisions had yet been made concerning which Police forces would link together under the new BCU structure, but the Borough Commander felt that it was highly likely that Bromley Police would link with Croydon Police.

RESOLVED that the Police update be noted.  

In accordance with the Council’s Constitution, questions to the Safer Bromley Partnership Strategic Group must be received in writing 4 working days before the date of the meeting. Therefore please ensure that questions are received by the Democratic Services Team by 5pm on 4^th March 2016.

No questions had been received

The Safer Neighbourhood Board update was provided by Cllr Tim Stevens JP.

The most recent public meeting had taken place at Chislehurst, where 65 attended. The meeting was well received, and the residents were enthusiastic. It was noted that the Safer Neighbourhood Board (SNB) had met during the previous week.

Cllr Stevens confirmed that all of the funding obtainable from MOPAC for the running of the Board over the last two years had now been obtained. The value of this entitlement was £29k per annum. Bids for the new financial year were now being considered. An email had been sent out previously from the Board’s Administrator (Cllr Kate Lymer) detailing previous bids.

The next meeting of the SNB was confirmed for 19^th May in the Crays. Cllr Stevens asked the Group to note that the governance and administration of Bromley SNB had received positive recognition from MOPAC. It was noted that three other Boards had not held a public meeting; the Bromley SNB was seen as a yardstick for other boards.

It was confirmed that Cllr Stevens would be Chairing the SNB for a third year term, and that Terry Belcher would be continuing in the office of Vice Chair.

RESOLVED that the SNB update be noted.  

The Safer Bromley Partnership Strategic Assessment update was provided by the Head of Trading Standards and Community Safety—Mr Rob Vale. A panel had met in February to discuss the Strategy with representatives from the Police, London Fire Brigade and the Youth Offending Service. Development of the Strategy was ongoing, and a request for data had been sent to partners. Horizon scanning was taking place to identify priority areas. It was hoped that agencies would report back concerning the scale and context of issues. This information would be fed back to Mr Samuel Davies, and all the data and information would be integrated into a final strategy document.

So far, five priority areas had been identified:

·  Domestic Abuse

·  PREVENT

·  Gangs and Youth Violence

·  An Aging Population

·  Reducing Reoffending

The Group had to consider strategic ambitions that were realistic; then an Action Plan could be developed.

Post Meeting Note:

“An Aging Population” is no longer going to be one of the priority areas.

Mr Vale reminded the Group that the issue of an aging population overlapped with the work of the Adult Safeguarding Board. He preferred that the issue remained with the SBP to avoid duplication. The Borough Fire Commander suggested that the sub-groups should be targeted with KPI’s. Mr Vale expressed his appreciation to Superintendent Trevor Lawry, and to Samuel Davies for their hard work in developing the control strategy document. The newly appointed Domestic Abuse Commissioner was appreciative that DV had been identified as a priority.

The Borough Police Commander expressed the view that a key officer meeting was required to develop the strategy to the next level, and to identify the key agencies/officers that would be leading. He stated that the Police would facilitate the meeting. The following “Leads” for priority areas were suggested:

·  The Director of Children’s Services would be the LBB Lead

·  Superintendent Trevor Lawry would be the DV Lead

·  “PREVENT” would need a senior LBB officer—TBC

·  Adults at Risk—TBC—Possibly the LBB Assistant Director for Adult Safeguarding

·  Public Health—Dr Nada Lemic

·  Education—LBB Director of Education and Interim Head of Youth Offending Service

The Chairman noted that there had been problems with obtaining regular representation from the Probation Service and the London Community Rehabilitation Company.

The Key Officer meeting would be coordinated by the LBB Head of Community Trading Standards and Community Safety; it was intended that the meeting would take place in April 2016. The aim was to develop a three year strategic plan.

Post Meeting Note:

At the Key Officer meeting, discussion will take place to decide if a new priority will be designated to replace “an aging population”.

RESOLVED

(1) that Key Officer Leads would be clarified where clarification was required

(2) that the Key Officer meeting be set up and scheduled for April 2016 

The Purple Flag scheme and the Prevent Strategy are sub sections of this agenda item.

The Purple Flag update was provided in its own subsection, and an update on the Prevent Strategy was provided in Matters Arising.   

Cheryl Curr attended to provide an update on the Purple Flag application for Beckenham.

It was noted that the award was ratified during February 2016. A purple flag was now displayed on a flag pole in Beckenham Green. The award was given for excellence in managing the Beckenham night time economy, which constituted a major part of the economics of the town. It indicated that Beckenham was a safe place.

The award was given subsequent to an assessment by two independent assessors. The assessors were impressed by the partnership between LBB Licensing and the Police. A case study was going to be written up detailing this. The assessors would be interested in looking for continuous improvement. There was going to be an initial interim assessment in one year, followed by another full assessment in two years.

Training was going to be provided across the board to facilitate the identification of vulnerable people. The Borough Fire Commander was interested in this training being provided to the Fire Service, and agreed to discuss this further with Ms Curr subsequent to the meeting.     

The Borough Commander asked if the training had been passed on to Street Pastors, and the answer to this was affirmative; it had also been passed on to taxi drivers. Ms Curr informed the Group that the Town Centre Manager had led on this project, but that this post was being deleted as from March 2017.

RESOLVED that arrangements for the provision of “vulnerability” training for the Fire Service be progressed.  

Mr Vale had updated on the Prevent Strategy in the Matters Arising update.

The Sub Group updates are noted in the specific sub sections.

A Domestic Abuse update has also been provided in the Matters Arising Item.

The new DV Commissioner (Victoria Roberts) gave the update on domestic abuse and the Domestic Homicide Review.

The update that was given at the meeting has been noted in the item on Matters Arising.

RESOLVED

(1) that an update report on the LBB Domestic Abuse Strategy be presented to the Group at the next meeting

(2) that an update on the DHR recommendations be brought to the Group at the next meeting

(3) that an update on progress made by the Domestic Abuse Task and Finish Group be brought to the next meeting  

The Youth Offending update was given by Kay Weiss, Director of Children’s Services.

It was noted that a third update on the progress of the Youth Offending Services Improvement Plan had recently been presented to the Education and Policy Development and Scrutiny Committee (ED 16019).

The Bromley Youth Offending Service (YOS) was subject to a Full Joint Inspection by HM Inspectorate of Probation (HMIP) in February 2015. The outcome of the inspection was disappointing, with four out of five of six key judgements considered to be poor, 1 unsatisfactory and 1 satisfactory.

In response to the Inspection, the YOS, with the help of the Youth Justice Board (YJB), developed an Improvement Plan. The Plan was presented to a Joint Education, Care Services and Public Protection and Safety PDS Committee meeting on 22nd July 2015. The Improvement Plan had been updated and was subsequently agreed by the YOS Management Board and the HMIP Lead Inspector.

The updated Improvement Plan showed that  most planned actions had been progressed or completed. The Service continued to work hard to introduce further improvements identified in the Plan. The Director felt that good progress was being made on the Improvement Plan. Audits of case work show evidence of improved practice.

On 11th February 2016, members of the YOS Management Board attended the YOS  Management Board Annual Conference Afternoon. The main aim of this event was for the Board to help shape the Service’s Annual Strategic Plan for 2016/2017. The Annual Strategic Plan would eventually replace the YOS Improvement Plan, as it outlined the priorities and ambitions for the YOS over the forthcoming year. The Annual Strategic Plan 2016/2017 had to be submitted to the Youth Justice Board for approval. This was also a condition of the YOS continuing to receive the annual grant from the YJB.

The Director informed the Group that due to a reduction in the YJB grant during 2015 -16, combined with the need to meet the local savings target, the Interim Head of the YOS had initiated a consultation process with all staff. As part of this process a consultation report which outlined the changes that were being recommended as part of the restructure of the service effective from April 2016 had been prepared. The YJB has recently announced further reductions in grant of up to 25% for 2016 – 17.

The Director noted the importance of partnership working and commented that it was much improved, and in this regard referenced a “Knife Crime Group” for young people that was a partnership involving the Police, Youth Offending Service, and the medical profession. It was also the case that a close partnership had evolved with the Youth Justice Board.

The Director notified the Group that an HMIP Inspection was due later this year and a YJB ‘mock inspection’ would take place in the next few days to help prepare.

The Borough Commander noted the meeting date for the YOS Management Board. He also expressed the view that the police officers allocated to the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 76.

The Gangs update was presented by Chief Inspector Davit Tait.

A document that had been released by the Home Office was referenced, and this was “Ending Gang Violence and Exploitation”. The document had identified six key priorities of the new cross-government approach to ending gang violence and exploitation. In particular, it was aimed at local areas that were involved in the Home Office Ending Gang and Youth Violence (EGYV) programme.

The six key priorities that had been identified were:

·  Tackle county lines – the exploitation of vulnerable people by a hard core of gang members to sell drugs

·  Protect vulnerable locations – places where vulnerable young people can be targeted, including pupil referral units and residential children’s care homes

·  Reduce violence and knife crime – including improving the way national and local partners use tools and powers

·  Safeguard gang-associated women and girls – including strengthening local practices

·  Promote early intervention – using evidence from the Early Intervention Foundation to identify and support vulnerable children and young people (including identifying mental health problems

·  Promote meaningful alternatives to gangs such as education, training and employment

There had been some success with the deployment of the “Growing against Violence” program, but it was noted that problems had been experienced with the deployment of the program in Harris Academies.

It was noted that the new graduate intern (Samuel Davies) had been tasked with drafting a report that would look at ways of developing diversionary activities and strategies to encourage exit, and promote meaningful alternatives. It was the intention that this document be delivered to the next meeting of the Gangs Strategic Group on March 31^st 2016. 

There was no one present at the meeting to provide an offender management update.

The ASB update was provided by the Borough Fire Commander. He stated that ASB data indicated a downward trend in offences.

The Borough Fire Commander referred the Group to minute 62 of the previous meeting which stated, ‘RESOLVED that attention be given to the issue concerning the rising number of Eastern European nationals sleeping rough, and that intelligence on rough sleepers in “beds and sheds” be fed back to the Fire Service’.

The Borough Fire Commander informed the Group that no such intelligence had been received.

The Borough Fire Commander stated that it would be useful to the Fire Service if they received information concerning planning permission refusals. Similarly, he felt that it would also be useful to the Fire Service if they were informed of business premises that were not paying business rates, as there could be links in these instances to crime and ASB. It was not clear to the Group where this information could be accessed from.

The Borough Fire Commander cited the example of old petrol stations that had now been converted into premises for washing cars. It was the case that in some circumstances, these premises were linked to issues of exploitation and fire safety.

The Borough Fire Commander asked if there had been any updates concerning “fly tipping”. It was agreed that Mr Dan Jones (Assistant Director for Greenspace, Street Scene and Public Protection) update the Borough Fire Commander concerning this.     

Ms Susie Clark (Communications Officer) informed the Group that a new media campaign “We’re Watching You” was now being launched to deter fly tipping.

RESOLVED

(1) that the Borough Fire Commander be updated concerning rough sleepers

(2) that investigations be undertaken to see if details of those business premises not paying business rates could be forwarded to the Borough Fire Commander

(3) that the Assistant Director for Greenspace, Street Scene and Public Protection update the Borough Fire Commander with respect to fly tipping      

The LBB Communications Officer (Susie Clark) updated the Group concerning the latest edition of the (SBN) Safer Bromley News. This was being distributed simultaneously with the latest edition of “Environment Matters”.

The SBN led with a front page article concerning Safeguarding. The SBN also contained interesting articles on fly tipping, domestic abuse, the Purple Flag Award for Beckenham, crime support, mentoring and the newly refurbished fire station in Orpington.   

This is the most recent Newsletter from the Borough Commander

The most recent edition of the Borough Commander’s Newsletter was incorporated into the agenda and noted.

No other business was discussed.

The date of the next meeting will be Tuesday 14^th June 2016, subject to ratification of the LBB Programme of Meetings by the GP&L Committee.

The next meeting was scheduled to be held at Bromley Civic Centre on Tuesday 14^th June 2016 at 10.00am.

It was noted that this was subject to ratification of the LBB Calendar of Meetings by the General Purposes and Licensing Committee.

Post Meeting Note:

The next meeting of the Safer Bromley Partnership has been confirmed as Tuesday 28^th June 2016.