Agenda and minutes

RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting held on 6 September 2022 be confirmed and signed by the Chair as an accurate record.

No declarations of interest were received.

Councillor Calum Watt, Chair of the Community Leadership Scrutiny Committee, opened the meeting and provided the Committee with a brief introduction to guest speaker, Chief Superintendent Jon McAdam and the topic of discussion which was community policing in Lincoln.

The Committee received a verbal presentation from Chief Superintendent Jon McAdam, representing Lincolnshire Police within which he:

a)    confirmed that Lincolnshire Police were in the process of a significant recruitment programme, the largest since approximately 2000. There would be an additional 20,000 police officers within the national force and a proportion of those would be allocated to Lincoln.

b)    highlighted that through the Uplift Programme, there would be an additional 146 officers for Lincolnshire.

c)     advised that due to a change in pension schemes and taxation, there had been number of officers that had historically been eligible for retirement upon completion of thirty years’ service – those eligible left which added to the recruitment need but this had changed moving forward.

d)    outlined that each recruitment intake had doubled to thirty officers and there had been an introduction of a mid-year intake in an attempt to future proof policing with 1086 officers increasing to 1186 in the first instance.

e)    advised that future intakes would be much larger at forty officers per intake, due to take place in January and March 2023.

f)      reported that there had been an implication on the service nationally as there was a legal obligation to implement a framework of education.

g)    explained that consideration had been given to officer retention however there was a potential for unforeseen circumstances such as career change/s and health related issues that could cause a decline in officer numbers. In addition, recruitment could not exceed the number of vacancies required.

h)    highlighted that interviews were underway for future police officers to be included in January’s cohort. In addition, there were a number of Police Community Support Officers (PCSO’s) in training.

i)      added that there were a large number of individuals interested in joining the police force and the interview and recruitment process was vigorous given the nature of the role.

j)      invited questions and comments from members of the Committee.

As a result of discussions between members, officers and Chief Superintendent Jon McAdam, the following points were made: -

Question: What work was being done to promote woman’s safety within the city?

Response: Violence towards woman and girls was a key priority within the partnership and went beyond a single agency response.Lincolnshire was a safe place to work, live and visit and it was important to ensure that there was a sense of feeling safe within the community.A further Superintendent was in place to focus on violence against women and girls and work would include the Lincolnshire County Council and City of Lincoln Council.In addition, the Police tracked Street Safe Data weekly to enable a response to individuals that felt isolated.

In an emergency situation, the advice given would be to contact the Police using 999. In addition, any concerns could be raised with PCSO’s and police officers within the community. Work was ongoing with detectives to investigate serious identified offenders. In addition, a preventative approach was important and included work within the night-time economy such  ...  view the full minutes text for item 18.

Consideration was given to the Committee’s work programme. The Chair advised that further to scoping discussions with officers, the focus of the Committee’s work programme for the remaining municipal year would include Suicide rates in Lincoln and an update on the Cost-of-Living crisis and the Cultural Consortium.

The Chair confirmed that the Committee’s work would include a focus on Suicide rates within Lincoln. It was agreed that this item would be brought before the Committee in December. The Democratic Services Officer added that confirmed attendance had been received from Sarah Connery, CEO of Lincolnshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust (LPFT), Fiona Bone, LPFT Suicide Prevention and Self-Injury Reduction Lead and Lucy Gavens, Consultant in Public Health, Lincolnshire County Council. The Chair requested that officers work with the communications team to arrange a press release for the meeting.

Discussion took place regarding an update on the Cost-of-Living crisis and it was agreed that the update would be brought before the Committee in January 2023.

Discussion took place regarding an update on the Cultural Consortium and it was agreed that the update would be brought before the Committee in January 2023.

Further to a request received from Charlotte Brooks, Director, LocalMotion, it was agreed that an update on the Poverty Truth Commission would be brought before the Committee in June 2023 after the Commissions launch in March 2023.

Date of Next Meeting: Tuesday 6 December 2022.