No apologies were received.

There were no declarations of pecuniary interest.

Panel members confirmed that these were a true and accurate record of the previous meeting

The Executive Director of Innovation and Change was invited to present the findings of the Staff Survey.

In response to questions:

This was the first time a staff survey and supporting data analysis had been conducted in-house using the EmPerform software system. This system is currently used for staff appraisals and staff surveys, with probations and exit interviews moving over to the same software shortly, so we can monitor trends.

There is a possibility the low turnout of responses could be linked to a distrust of the new survey tool as staff may have feared it was not anonymous as it is tied into appraisals system.

Each directorate is devising their own action plan to respond appropriately to the staff survey responses. However, the survey results will not be used in isolation. When creating action points, other sources will be included as well, including ongoing feedback and pulse surveys of employees.

Further engagement planed around hybrid working – devising a working model for the future (equity and fairness).

Good rate of understanding for our new corporate values, with almost all members of staff (98%) being aware of them.

Managing in a hybrid environment is a skill - managers should be able to gauge performance and productivity on the outcomes produced. Presenteeism isn’t a measure of productivity. Staff survey – some staff felt productivity was better at home.

Administrative Support Hubs will create opportunities for progression and learning and development.

Action: Polly committed to bringing a workforce update (L&D, apprenticeships, Admin support review).

The Commission welcomed Chief Superintendent Steve Lemon to the meeting.

Key figures noted were:

• TNO’s down 2.1%
• 8.7% reduction in personal robbery across Merton
• Currently hitting 90% of calls within 15 minutes

In response to questions:

Commercial procurement rules – we cannot be seen to recommend particular products, such as AI cameras, but we welcome and support businesses to implement any systems that help to identify suspects and/or residents using GPS trackers for cars and bikes with remote locking, and phone deactivation to disincentivise value of stealing items.

Met Police do need to catch up technology wise, particularly in terms of uploading CCTV and videos from businesses.

The Head of Community Safety commented that there is a process in place for incidents captured on CCTV to be emailed over to Safer Neighbourhood Team.

Merton Council monitor Clarion CCTV, and have entered into an SLA with MOAT to monitor a small number of their cameras (ones which we supply).

Licenced premises – CCTV can be put in as a condition of a licence.

House clearance – where can sharp kitchen knives be disposed of safely? If a resident is concerned about walking around with knives. If capacity available, officers could collect for those residents feel very uncomfortable walking around with such items. Could be a question for the LA waste contract.

Councillors can help us by encouraging residents to keep talking to us about their concerns and sharing information and intelligence.

The Community Safety Team Manager introduced the report, which provided an update on the work of Safer Merton, including the Nighttime strategy and PSPO.

In response to questions:

Multi-agency task and finish groups – 43 in a year. The task and finish groups are used to address complex problem locations or individuals. The model used includes a large amount of partnership work, including working with the Police Designing Out Crime Officers where ASB is impacting on the community.

Action: Could Cllrs see outputs – lessons could be transferable.

Cllr Brunt recommended all Cllrs spend some time in the CCTV unit.

New cameras are high definition, but they do not have facial recognition.

Gill Manly – Consistent problems with Streetlights in Mitcham (Action: Officers to link Cllr Manly with Highways Team).

The Civil Protection Manager gave a brief overview of the report, which provides an update on emergency planning and organisational resilience.

In response to questions:

Following major incidents, the council carries out a debrief to capture details of the incident and feedback from participants - lessons have been learned with regards to improving communications

Recovery Plan has been put in place - Happy to walk through with Councillors, and there is training available for everyone on the resilience rota.

Actions are reported to the Corporate Resilience Board.

The work programme was agreed.