Home Office Police Authority Chief Executives Event

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Home Office Police Authority Chief Executives
Event Preparing for Police and Crime
Commissioners Home Office
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1st Interactive Session

• Preparing for a new Government
• Lessons for preparing for PCCs
• Oscar Ramudo
• Police Reform Unit
• Home Office

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1. Preparing for PCCs their priorities (1 of 3)

• Follow media identify key issues raised in
  debates, news, interviews
• Analyse your candidates backgrounds look at
  skills, experience, special interests, use
  Google, Wikipedia etc
• Ensure all candidates get equal access to
  information dont do something for one
  candidate that you are not prepared to do for
  another

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1. Preparing for PCCs their priorities (2 of 3)

• Read manifestos and think about
• What policies will need consultation
• What can be implemented immediately
• How to time delivery
• Information that the PCC may/will require to make
  informed decisions about delivering manifesto
  promises - identify potential risks and
  mitigation
• The actions you take during your first three
  months in a new job will largely determine where
  you succeed or fail. Transitions are a period of
  opportunity, a chance to start afresh and to make
  needed changes in an organisation. But they are
  also periods of acute vulnerability because you
  lack established working relationships and a
  detailed understanding of your new role. If you
  fail to build momentum during your transition,
  you will face an uphill battle from that point.
• Michael Watkins, The First 90 Days, p.1

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1. Preparing for PCCs their priorities (3 of 3)

• Briefing content initially for candidates and
  then for PCCs
• Feeding into National level briefing centrally
  commissioned via project 5b of the PCC Transition
  Programme
• Local level locally commissioned via APACE with
  some Central Government and input
• Regional level locally commissioned to form
  part of wider local level briefing eg
  collaboration agreements
• Example briefings will be made available
• Important to minimise burden on police forces
  when producing material for candidate/PCC
  briefing
• when commissioning material ensure that
• The task is clear with clear deadlines a clear
  example to follow
• Support is available to forces if they have any
  questions
•  We emphasise that the vast majority of material
  required should already exist in some form
• We emphasise that this process is designed to
  save them time in the long run

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2. What PCCs will want need to know about the
force issues locally (that they may not already
know)

• Different approaches to briefing consider what
  format to use
• Oral, written, long, short, PowerPoint, Word
• Dont assume they know it, dont assume they will
  read it
• Performance data including examples of actions
  underway to minimise bureaucracy?
• Criminal Justice Performance?
• HMIC reports?
• Demographics?
• Public perception?
• Social and economic?
• Imagine preparing for a new job by working flat
  out travelling the country for six weeks and then
  go a few nights without sleep.
•            Alistair Campbell, Diaries, Thursday,
  1 May 1997

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3. Presenting local challenges issues

• PCCs will have a partial picture regardless of
  how informed they are
• Completing the picture to assist delivery without
  obstructing is key to gaining their trust
• The transition of power between administrations
  places the spotlight on the permanent
  institutions of the state .... The leaders of
  the permanent public service provide continuity
  between administrations. Their ability to earn
  and retain the trust of successive
  administrations is a critical factor in the
  smooth transition of power from one group of
  elected officials to another.
• Public Policy Forum, 2001, p.27

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Table discussions Preparing for the 1st 100 days

• Question A for Tables 1, 2 3
• After youve said welcome hello, what next?
  Identify 10 broad issues to be dealt with for
• Day 1
• Week 1
• Month 1
• Question B for Tables 4 5
• How do you prepare to deliver your PCCs
  priorities and what else should they also
  prioritise for their area post election?
• Question C for Tables 6, 7 8
• What are the challenges for those new to working
  in the public sector/CJS? How to address them?
• What are the challenges for those experienced in
  working in the public sector/CJS? How to
  address them?

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2nd Interactive Session

• Working with Ministers, PCCs Elected Office
  Holders
• Gareth Redmond
• Police Transparency Unit
• Home Office

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1. Your PCC (1 of 3)

• Establishing an effective relationship with your
  PCC
• Need to understand and establish your PCCs
  preferences early
• Consider organisational issues in advance,
  analysing strengths and weaknesses of your
  existing team with potential options for how to
  form the OPCC
• Expect change be prepared to move away from
  existing ways of working and taking a new and
  fresh approach

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1. Your PCC (2 of 3)

• Promoting delivering your PCCs decisions
• Must help your PCC to promote and defend their
  decisions, even if you advised against them it
  is vital that their programmes are professionally
  promoted and defended in order to achieve their
  objectives
• You will be responsible for delivery and
  implementing on the ground, whether that be
  delivery directly or indirectly through others
  focus on ensuring the delivery of worthwhile
  outcomes, working closely with delivery partners
  both inside and outside the police

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1. Your PCC (3 of 3)

• Supporting your PCC
• Ensure you control access to your PCC in a
  constructive way plan out who they would want
  to meet in the first few days, weeks, month
• Get involved in priorities both development and
  forward planning
• Manage the workload briefing requests,
  speeches, diary invitations, letters, scrutiny
  meetings and record and follow up actions
  including commitments made on visits, in phone
  calls etc
• Adopt a strategic approach to communications

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2. Informing/Making Policy

• Informing your PCCs decisions
• Be prepared to give frank advice to your PCC
  before they make decisions
• they will need it
• Advice should be private, honest, informed and
  expect to face them with the truth even when it
  turns up in an inconvenient form

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3. Effective ways of doing business

• Single accountability vs collective
  accountability
• Consider potential governance models for single
  accountability and consider suitable options for
  your force area depending on existing structures
  within the force and their preferences for
  performance management frameworks and perceptions
  of key risks in the area etc
• Be prepared to throw out the received wisdom on
  how things are done and dont get stuck
  defending past policies or the status quo. There
  needs to be a fresh mindset and approach

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Table discussions Working with Ministers, PCCs
and Elected Office Holders

• Question A for Tables 6, 7 8
• Your PCC
• What are the different ways of working that PCCs
  may bring with them?
• How do you plan to identify these alter
  existing ways of working?
• Question B for Tables 1 2
• Informing/Making policy
• When/in what circumstances will you advise?
• What form will it take?
• Question C for Tables 3, 4 5
• Single accountability vs collective
  accountability
• What are the challenges?
• How to address them?

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Next Steps

• Feeding back the top ten issues we have heard
  today

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Summary of the key points raised throughout the
Chief Executives Event (1 of 2)

• Take a constructive stance be in no doubt of
  the legitimacy of the office. They are entitled
  to implement their agenda.
• Establish a working relationship in person rather
  than through endless pages of advice
• Change in
• risk - political, personal decisions and how this
  is to be approached not just by the PCC but also
  the CC
• functions - governance strategic direction
  moving to governance executive decision making
• governance - getting things done, gearing up now
  for November
• Preparing for day one - understanding the
  manifesto, diary, engagement with media,
  establishing maintaining relationship with LAs
  other partners.

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Summary of the key points raised throughout the
Chief Executives Event (2 of 2)

• Quickly deciphering what are firm commitments
  what are aspirations, utilising local strategic
  assessments, knowing other partners priorities as
  well as keeping an eye on the national!
• Establishing working relationships with Chief
  Constables will be key
• Honest and clear advice with pros and cons set
  out
• Personalities cannot be planned for but must be
  quickly adapted too expect variation
• In terms of Partners clarity is required on
  guidance Home Office will produce some but PCCs
  are part of localised agenda
• Importance of partners engage them locally on
  transition

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CPG and Police Authority Chief Executives
Proposed Buddying Scheme

• Purpose and aim 
• Allow Chief Executives to get an insight into
  what it is like to work with elected individuals
  (Ministers) and deal with the demands that may
  arise
• Assist Chief Executives to understand how their
  roles may change when PCCs take office
• Provide CPG colleagues with real-life exposure to
  the preparations required to transition and
  implement a flagship Government policy on the
  ground and have the chance to make the most of
  any exposure resulting from the proposal to
  identify any opportunities to deliver our
  policies
• Help CPG/Home Office to inform how we will need
  to alter our ways of working to best fit the new
  policing landscape
• Allow all to establish mutually beneficial
  relationships, which can be continued once PCCs
  take up office

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CPG and Police Authority Chief Executives
Proposed Buddying Scheme

• Interested?
• How to sign up
• Each table has a sign up sheet
• Please complete it with all your details and we
  will be in touch
• If youd like any further information contact
• Sirin Ge?men
• sirin.gecmen_at_homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk
• 020 7035 8971