Information

Welcome and introductions.

Attendees:
PFCC Danielle Stone (DS)
DPFCC Marianne Kimani (MK)
Jonny Bugg (JB)
Paul Fell (PF)
Vaughan Ashcroft (VA)
DCC Ash Tuckley (AT)
Temp ACC Adam Ward (AW)
Nick Alexander (NA)
Stuart McCartney (SMc)
Colleen Rattingan (CR)

Deborah Denton (DD) (Observer)

DS welcomed everyone to the meeting.

Minutes and decisions of previous meeting

Actions – An update was provided and the OPFCC noted the issue of Road Safety was being taken forward by Central Government. DCC Tuckley provided a brief update on the work being undertaken by the force.

PART 1

Call Handling – 101 Performance

The Commissioner opened the discussion and noted her concerns about the performance, in particular the abandonment rate for 101 calls. She sought assurance from the Force that they understood the performance and the reasons behind it. DCC Tuckley responded and noted that this issue was linked to work being undertaken in relation to overall demand and once completed it should provide the Commissioner with assurance that performance is improving.

He then explained the triage process and noted callers receive options to report issues online which has seen a 50% increase since November 2024, along with a 53% increase in the use of web chate services. He also explained that the Control Room also offer a call back option.

DCC then updated the Commissioner on the improvements being delivered in relation to abandoned calls and how the Force have delivered efficiencies in call handling. The DPFCC questioned the Force about the sustainability of this performance. ACC Ward explained the FCR need to maintain a watching brief on performance and training as well being proactive in relation to practicing contingency plans to ensure any weaknesses are identified. The Commissioner asked if the triage system meant callers spoke with a call handler. DCC Tuckley responded and explained how the system works. He felt it would be useful to have more data to corroborate 101/999 calls and when people drop off but noted the difficulties in obtaining the data. The OPFCC Performance Director noted that the performance figures were going in the right direction but sought assurance that the increase in 999 calls was not due to the performance of 101 call handling.

DCC informed the Commissioner that the performance had improved significantly since the time that the data that informed this meeting had been produced, with 101 abandonment reducing from 15% to 7.4% now. He stressed that there had been a long journey of improvement from the last HMICFRS inspection and there early activity in Force at this time indicated a positive view of these processes.

Assurance Statement
In conclusion, the Commissioner was assured that the performance was positive in terms of trajectory, the Force understood the causes of the earlier poorer performance and felt that the improvements made were sustainable. She stressed the importance of the impact that this can have on public confidence but also noted that she had an acceptance that this was a non emergency number.

Grade 1 Urban Response Times

The Commissioner opened the discussion by asking how the Northamptonshire Police compared to other forces. DCC Tuckley responded and explained that a lot of work was being undertaken to improve response times. He explained that different forces have different response models which makes comparison difficult. The Commissioner asked if the current model of having specialist teams weakens the performance of the response teams. ACC Ward responded and explained how the force were performing against their agreed SLAs.

The Commissioner noted this perfiormance but made the point that this performance was not where she was satisfaied and expected to see a plan to improve this.

He then updated the Commissioner on the work being undertaken to better understand risk and reviewing grading to ensure the force is responding at the right level. The Commissioner expressed her concerns regarding burnout amongst officers on response. DCC Tuckley responded and noted that it was an issue being monitored and explained the current challenges facing the force in relation to response. Head of Strategy and Quality Assurance then briefed the Commissioner on work being undertaken on Demand Managament and how this work will influence future decision making. She also noted that front line officers were being consulted to help deliver improvments.

AT and AW stated that lots of assessment had taken place and it was now felt that the only way to significantly improve these respsonse time would be to significantly change the operating model of the Force, as resources were not available to manage other risk areas and provide the increased resilience on response teams that would be required. This was the demand work that CR was leading.

Assurance Statement
The Commissioner concluded the discussion and noted there was a lot of issues to consider. She felt it was important that improvments are delivered to ease the pressure on front line officers which could impact on their performance. While assured that the Force were looking at work in relation to this she expressed her concerns over the time it was taking and stated that she expected to see a plan emerge with timelines over the presentation and implementation of some of these changes

 

PART 2

Demand and resourcing

This matter was dealt with under the discussion relating to response times. This discussion included details on the work that had been undertaken and continued to better understand what the actual demand looked like and the barriers to being able to reduce it, shift patterns and their alignment with demand, and alternative methods of delivering against it.

Assurance Statement

The Commissioner was assured that there was a better and developing understanding of the issue as a result of the work described but stated that this was a key issue in terms of meeting calls for service and staff well being and while she was assured that significant work was ongoing she needed to see improvements in this area of the force performance.

 

Force budget setting 2026/ 2027

The Commissioner noted that the proposals being tabled contained both growth proposals and savings. She asked the force how these would be managed. The Force Chief Finance Officer agreed to provide clearer information within the tables as set out in the draft proposals. The Commissioner then sought further clarification regarding staff numbers and the inflation figures within the proposals. The Force’s Chief Finance Officer briefed the Commissioner on the background to the assumptions regarding pay awards, the uplift in officers and the cost of regional commitments. The Commissioner then enquired about the implementation of transformative AI solutions within the Force and how this should be central to the ongoing work to deliver improvements to the front line. In response, DCC Tuckley noted the challenges of delivering such systems in a timely manner. The Commissioner felt that the force needs to deliver a three-year plan on this so that she can effectively hold the Chief Constable to account for the rollout of innovative technology. The OPFCC Performance Director noted that this plan could be part of the wider work being delivered on reducing demand and increasing efficiency.

The Force’s Chief Finance Officer then updated the Commissioner on the work related to savings within the budget and the Commissioner responded by highlighting the importance of providing timelines in relation to important decisions to enable people to effectively manage their workloads. The Commissioner then noted the issue of overtime and establishment numbers. The Force’s Chief Finance Officer responded and explained the assumptions regarding inflation and overtime made within the draft budget proposals. The Commissioner noted that some overtime was inevitable, but it should not be expected.

The OPFCC Performance Director asked whether the proposed investments for 2026/27 aligned with the risks identified in the Force Management Statement and was provided assurances from DCC that this was the case.

The OPFCC Chief Finance Officer reminded colleagues that the draft budget proposals needed to be agreed and given the final funding settlement was yet to be announced, several scenarios were provided. The Commissioner set out the need to move forward with a realistic position and sought further clarity, in relation to the establishment numbers of police officers that she was being presented with. The OPFCC Chief Finance Officer suggested a further update to be presented to the Commissioner in the following week.

ACTION – PF to identify a suitable time for an additional meeting to discuss amendments to this paper.
ACTION – AT to explore how a three year technology investment and implementation plan can be constructed relating to the reduction and management of demand.

Assurance Statement
The Commissioner recognised the difficulties associated with the presentation of this budget proposal, given the lack of clarity from the finance settlement, but noted that there were still some areas in the presented paper that she required additional clarity in relation to.

She made the point that she did expect to see a step change in thinking about the management of demand using technology as well as people in the future.

She requested a further meeting the following week with additional clarity of recruitment and officer number scenarios on which a final budget decision could be made.

AOB

No further business was raised.