Recommendation 52

HM Government Accepted

The Home Office and Ministers have been clear on the strategic priorities for policing: to cut crime, improve trust and confidence in policing and deliver justice and high-quality outcomes for victims. The Beating Crime Plan, published in July 2021, set out the strategic approach to cutting homicide, serious violence and neighbourhood crime; exposing and ending hidden harms such as VAWG, child sexual abuse and modern slavery; and, building capability and capacity to deal with fraud, cyber and online crime. To focus the system on our national crime priorities we have developed directional, national measures for policing to reduce key crime types (the National Crime and Policing Measures). These measures provide collective responsibility to deliver real improvement. The Government welcomes the commitments from the NPCC for the police to attend the scene of all residential burglaries, which came into operation in Spring 2023. In August 2023, following discussions with the NPCC, APCC, College of Policing and HM Chief Inspector, the Home Secretary and Minister for Crime, Policing and Fire announced that police forces across England and Wales had agreed to a national commitment to pursue all leads for all crime types where there is a reasonable chance it could result in catching a perpetrator and solving a crime. Forces have been implementing this commitment which is key to getting the basics right. His Majesty’s Inspectorate will use their existing inspections framework to assess whether forces are following the College of Policing’s updated guidance and professional practice for Investigations, and we will closely monitor their findings. The Government’s Anti-social Behaviour (ASB) Action Plan, published in March 2023, affirms the Government’s commitment to tackling ASB. It is backed by £160m of new funding, the bulk of which will be allocated to police forces in England and Wales to assist them deal with the menace of ASB which can blight communities. The Home Secretary also sets priorities for policing through the Strategic Policing Requirement (SPR), which sets out what, in their view, are the national threats at the time the document is issued, and the appropriate national policing capabilities to counter those threats. Police and Crime Commissioners and Chief Constables must have regard for the SPR. The Home Office has taken steps to free up police time to focus on the strategic priorities. This includes simplifying Home Office counting rules and rolling out the RCRP approach to mental health.