Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 31
31
Accepted
The National Audit Office reported that to demonstrate value for money in the longer term,...
Recommendation
The National Audit Office reported that to demonstrate value for money in the longer term, the Department must show that the investment in additional officers has better enabled police forces to reduce crime and increase public confidence in policing. To date, the Department’s management of the Programme has largely focused on inputs (funding and officers recruited) and activity (supporting recruitment and office training) and the Department had not yet set out how it would evaluate the Programme’s impact on crime.48 We asked the Department about the expected impact of the Programme and the difference 41 Q 85 42 Committee of Public Accounts, Financial sustainability of police forces in England and Wales, HC 1513, Sixty- Seventh Report of Session 2017–19, 7 November 2018, para 6 43 Q 85, C&AG’s report, para 1.12 44 Q 85 45 C&AG’s report, para3.7 46 Qq 87, 89 47 Qq 75–77, 79 48 C&AG’s report, paras 13, 3.10 and 3.11 16 The Police Uplift Programme it would make to policing and to the public. The Department acknowledged that the Programme was narrowly scoped and focussed on inputs - recruiting an additional 20,000 police officers. We therefore asked the Department how it would judge the Programme in terms of outputs and outcomes and when taxpayers would begin to see benefits from the investment. The Department told us it was difficult to draw a direct link between extra police officers and reductions in crime as there are many variables involved and the ‘[link] is not very specific’.49
Government Response Summary
The Home Office is developing a medium to long-term evaluation framework, expected to be in place in Autumn 2022, to assess the impact of the Police Uplift Programme on crime outcomes and public confidence.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
6. PAC conclusion: Government has not yet set what impact the programme will have on forces’ ability to tackle crime, the public’s trust in policing or the wider Criminal Justice System. 6a. PAC recommendation: The department should: • By April 2023, develop a framework to evaluate the medium to long-term impact of the Programme, so that it can demonstrate that the objectives to reduce crime and improve public confidence in policing have been achieved. 6.1 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation Target implementation date: April 2023 6.2 The Home Office is in the process of developing a medium to long-term evaluation framework. This framework, which is subject to ministerial agreement, will be in place in Autumn 2022, with the evaluation expected to continue for several years. The evaluation will seek to determine where, and to what extent, the increase in workforce capacity has contributed to changes in policing performance and the impact that may have on crime outcomes. 6.3 Alongside the Police Uplift Programme evaluation framework, the Home Office has developed a performance framework to reduce crime and improve public confidence in policing. This framework sets out priority crime types this government wants the police to focus on and is overseen by a governance board which brings together policing partners to discuss progress and delivery issues; this work is underpinned by a new data tool (the Digital Crime and Performance Pack) which provides comparative force level data for each priority crime type, enabling performance assessments. The Home Office is also developing, with policing, a process where support will be offered to forces, via the College of Policing to improve performance. 6.4 Additionally, as set out in recommendation 2 above, the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) led review of operational productivity in policing will look to ensure policing is delivering the best possible value for the public from the significant investment made by this government. Total funding for policing in 2022-23 is nearly £17 billion, the highest for over a decade. By April 2023, the government will have invested over £3.5 billion to increase the operational capacity of policing and specifically recruit an additional 20,000 officers. This police-led review will ensure that this additional capacity is used effectively to reduce crime. 6b PAC recommendation: The department should: • In its Treasury Minute response, set out how it is working with partners in the Criminal Justice System to provide regular and ongoing analysis on the downstream impacts of the new officers to support better planning and demand management. 6.5 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Target implementation date: Spring 2023 6.6 From the outset of the Police Uplift Programme the Home Office has worked closely with partners at the Ministry of Justice and Crown Prosecution Service to understand the downstream impact of new officers, alongside the totality of the workforce, and other factors contributing to demand trajectories. The Home Office shares relevant analysis from the Police Uplift Programme on a regular basis, including projections on the future profile of uplift recruitment and assumptions around the contribution of new officers, all in support of ongoing broader analytical work to predict future criminal justice system (CJS) demand through downstream impact modelling. The Home Office will continue to work closely with partners throughout the Programme and beyond, to understand the impact of new officers both now and as they grow in experience and contribute more in future. 6.7 The Home Office is also developing its own framework to evaluate the medium to long- term impact of the Programme, as outlined in its response to recommendation 6a above. This will include building its understanding on the deployment choices that police forces are making with new officers, particularly in areas such as detective capacity, and how this filters through to downstream impact.