Sally Benatar, the Basic Command Unit Borough Commander introduced the report. The south west London Basic Command Unit (BCU) , comprising Merton, Richmond, Kingston and Wandsworth was the third to go live. The Borough Commander said that across London there had been significant cuts and that there were currently fewer police officers in London than in previous years but that additional funding was anticipated next year which would enable them to recruit more officers.

Since taking up the post the BCU Commander has attended various public and other meetings and was aware that the public’s main concerns include increasing the visibility of the police, tackling anti-social behaviour, improving accessibility of the 101 phone service and issues around contact with neighbourhood police officers.

The BCU Commander provided responses to those questions marked as “answer to follow” in the report:

Question 18

The answer is partly provided by the response to Question 14. In addition, the police are carrying out intelligence-led stop and search and are seeking to increase this as a preventative measure. The police also use a wide range of tactics, working in partnership, including covert operations to target gangs and drug dealers, as well as test purchases of knives plus enforcement action, work to remove online content that incites violence and use of automated number plate recognition to target moped enabled crime. The BCU Commander stressed the importance of prevention and early intervention work with schools.

Question 20

The BCU Commander referred to evidence from the College of Policing about the services that have the greatest impact on levels of crime. She added that one of the most significant factors in terms of demand on policing services is mental health.

Question 21

This is a complex area and there is no specific comparative data. Merton’s multi-agency panel is well placed to tackle criminal exploitation of children and young people. There is also lots of preventative work and proactive work on offender management to reduce the level of re-offending.

Question 22

There were no murders in Merton in 2016/17, 3 in 2017/18 and 2 so far this year. Strategic action taken is as described in previous answers.

Question 23

The PSPO has been one factor contributing to a lower level of anti-social behaviour reports this year. Further detail on street drinking and anti-social behaviour is contained in the Safer Merton report elsewhere on this agenda.

The Chair invited members to ask supplementary questions arising from the written responses set out in the agenda pack. The Borough Commander provided additional information in response to these questions:

·         Parade sites are the location at which officers start their shifts and receive their briefing. The number of officers at parade sites will vary across shifts and they are allocated as required to answer calls. They may return to the parade site during the shift but were more likely to go to one of the custody suites. Officers have mobile devices so can work from any police building.

·         Resource planning provides a minimum of 72 emergency response officers per shift across the four boroughs.

·         Data shows calls and crime reports received per borough but not officer time spent in each borough.

·         The move to the BCU model of policing has introduced a different way of working whereby officers follow through on crime reports rather than passing to other officers (this bring the BCU in line with other parts of the country)

·         Each ward has two dedicated police officers and one PCSO, in line with an undertaking by the Mayor of London. The number is not based on the number of total notifiable offences recorded for each ward.

·         Officers within the BCU are moved around to work flexibly and respond to demands as they arise. Additional resources can be drawn in from a central London pool if required, based on the risk posed balanced against demands elsewhere in London.

·         Ward officers look at crimes and trends in the local area and put out messages to residents. The BCU Commander undertook to discuss communication issues with Neighbourhood Watch.

·         There will be more school police officers in the BCU than previously and more work with primary schools. There are a number of vacancies at present.

·         No decision has been made yet on where the bases for the neighbourhood hubs will be located. The BCU Commander undertook to discuss this with Councillor Edith Macauley, Cabinet Member for Community Safety, Engagement and Equalities.

In response to a request for further information, the BCU Commander said that there is a police protocol that sets out powers and procedures in relation to Traveller encampments. Responses are made in partnership with the council. Debriefs are carried out and lessons learned include the importance of clear communication, ensuring response is proportionate and taking account of other responsibilities including safeguarding. Neil Thurlow, the council’s Community Safety Manager, added that the council is currently considering the case for taking out a borough wide injunction to protect council-owned land. Members noted that the Commission would receive a report on the Travellers unauthorised encampment protocol at its meeting on 24 April 2019.

There was discussion about the number of parking spaces available at Mitcham Police Station. ACTION: Councillors Owen Pritchard and Paul Kohler agreed to visit to check the actual number.

The BCU Commander invited Commission members to visit the police command control centre at Hendon to see how 999 calls are handled and allocated.

In response to a question about the crime statistics set out in the report the BCU Commander said that the number of offences had increased slightly and the detection rate had decreased slightly. This is the case across the BCU but less so in Merton than elsewhere. The police continue to encourage reporting of domestic abuse and are working to tackle knife crime, which is one of the local priorities.