Man found dead after welfare concerns reported – Greater Manchester Police, February 2020

Recommendation accepted: Having carefully considered your report, Greater Manchester Police (GMP) accepts in full the points raised. Prior to your report GMP has commenced detailed planning within the Operational Communications Branch (OCB) to address the issues identified.Having liaised with and sought the advice from Chief Inspector Flanagan OCB, I provide more detail of these measures below and reply to the specific issues raised as follows: 1.    Ensure that "the policy is being adhered to and unallocated incidents are escalated in line with the policy." GMP has conducted a review of the Incident Escalation Policy. The revision of this policy has been completed and is currently subject to consultation with staff associations prior to being adopted into practice. The new policy provides clarity around 'areas of responsibility,' and required actions dependent of circumstances. We have also reviewed the workability of the policy to ensure what is being asked of staff is ultimately achievable. GMP has also reviewed the way it identifies, records and mitigates risk and has moved to the nationally recognised THRIVE model. A process review has identified 5 separate 'touch points' at which the completion of a THRIVE assessment is required. These are:1)    When a call is received from a member of the public and an incident is created.2)    When the original grading of the incident is changed. That is, the assessment of the priority of the incident.3)    When the incident is escalated due to there being insufficient resources to allocate.4)    When there are any material changes in the circumstances of the incident. E.g. new information from the victim.5)    When an incident is closed (where officers do not attend). This THRIVE risk assessment tool has been integrated into GMP practice. 2.    Ensure that " relevant officers and staff receive training / awareness raising on the policy, in particular this should cover the steps taken to escalate  unallocated incidents." The review of the Incident Escalation Policy highlighted inconsistent understanding across the OCB. In order to support immediate improvements a 'Plan on a Page' has been developed, which has been circulated to all Radio Operators and wider within GMP to District Inspectors and Sergeants. Training is currently being provided on the current Incident Escalation Policy to all Radio Operators and Command & Control Supervisors. Training will be offered TO the District Sergeants and Inspectors via relevant leadership skills course. Once the revised Incident Escalation Policy has been approved for adoption, further training will be provided to all relevant persons in relation to the changes. 3.    Ensure that "monitoring and review should take place to ensure the policy is understood and being followed." The review of the Incident Escalation Policy has led to the creation of a new THRIVE Escalation Audit which will be completed by supervisors. This audit will assess the use and quality of the THRIVE assessment on an incident and the adherence by the Radio Operators to the Incident Escalation Policy. A further audit will be completed by the OCB Quality Assurance Team which will look at the adherence by the Command & Control Supervisors and District Staff to the Incident Escalation Policy. These audits will provide feedback to individuals on their actions and will also provide management information to guide organisational performance improvement. Both audits have been designed and are currently in testing prior to their launch.