What the impact would be if GMP ceased to use stop and search. The nature of engagement between communities and police officers.

Transcription

1 Stop and Search Report Produced in response to themed forum held on 16 June 2014

2 INTRODUCTION On 16 th June 2014, the Commissioner chaired a public forum on the topic of stop and search. This report summarises the issues discussed and the actions determined, along with the next steps to take the work forward. After a short presentation which covered key statistics and information about personal experiences of stop and search, Tony Lloyd, Deputy Commissioner Jim Battle and former Moss Side councillor, Roy Walters posed questions to two groups of witnesses. The first group compromised community representatives and youth workers. The second group was made up of officers from Greater Manchester Police. More than 50 members of the public attended the meeting at Manchester Town Hall to hear the discussion. ISSUES DISCUSSED The question and answer session covered the following topics. The contribution stop and search makes to reducing crime and how this lines up against the negative impact that it can have on trust within communities. Is stop and search used too much? What the impact would be if GMP ceased to use stop and search. The nature of engagement between communities and police officers. How stop and search might be improved. What does good stop and search look like? The feelings of young people when they are stopped and searched. Perceptions around whether some young people are stopped and searched because of the way they dress. The conduct and use of stop and search by officers in specialist units such as the Xcalibre Task Force and Tactical Aid Unit. The rights of people who are stopped and searched to record what happens. The very low number of complaints received by GMP specifically around stop and search. How community confidence that complaints will be taken seriously can be strengthened.

3 The level of police officers knowledge about their rights and responsibilities in relation to stop and search. How GMP monitors, supervises and manages the use of stop and search by individual officers to ensure this is appropriate. How monitoring and supervision could be improved. The use of body worn video cameras to record stop and search encounters. The use of the Airwave radio system to record information relating to stop and search encounters. How the accuracy and completeness of data could be enhanced. GMP s commitment to the Best Use of Stop and Search Scheme recently announced by the Home Secretary. The community witness group stressed that the issue of stop and search had been debated many times and they wanted to see a clear commitment from GMP to make improvements to current practice. ACTIONS The following actions have been designed in the light of the discussion and points raised at the forum, along with subsequent consideration of key issues. Undertaking stop and search Greater Manchester Police to ensure, and gather evidence to demonstrate that, in every case, stop and search: is intelligence led and properly targeted is based on legitimate, sufficient grounds is conducted courteously and considerately results in a record being created and a receipt being issued (NB: Taking these steps should reduce the number of stops carried out and increase the percentage resulting in arrest, summons or street warning).

4 Officer training Greater Manchester Police to review and revise training in the conduct of stop and search to: involve community members and young people to raise officers awareness of the impact of stop and search and officer behaviour on individuals, families and the wider community ensure there is increased emphasis on conducting stops with courtesy and consideration, regardless of the attitude of the person being stopped include inputs on the influence of unconscious bias and how this can be avoided Improving public knowledge and awareness Greater Manchester Police and the Commissioner s office to improve the information available to the public, and young people in particular, on stop and search. As well as information about people s rights, this should also encompass what people can expect regarding the conduct of stop and search and how to complain. The Commissioner s office will look to develop a web application covering all these points. Greater Manchester Police to examine how the receipt given to people when they are stopped and searched could be used to signpost people to sources of further information on their rights and how to complain (e.g. relevant web addresses). Use of Airwave Greater Manchester Police to revisit the use of the Airwave system for recording information about stop and search encounters and identify how this can be improved (e.g. to accurately link the grounds submitted to the search record, to improve the process of retrieving information from the system). Greater Manchester Police to send a clear message to officers that they need to submit the grounds for conducting a search immediately unless there are exceptional circumstances. The belief that it is acceptable to submit grounds up to 24 hours after the search must be challenged and dispelled. Monitoring and management Greater Manchester Police to ensure that supervisors undertake the requisite checks on the conduct of stop and search by their officers (e.g. dip sampling, observation). The purpose of the checks will be to ensure that individual officers are carrying out stops correctly, courteously, considerately, that are intelligence led and based on legitimate,

5 sufficient grounds. The checks will enable the identification of officers who are not carrying out stops as they should be and for whom remedial action or additional training is required. Stop and search should be a standing agenda item at the meetings of divisional senior leaders within GMP. Greater Manchester Police to explore the reasons for the apparently disproportionate use of stop and search by particular officers in particular locations and report back to the Commissioner s office on their findings. The Commissioner s office will continue to monitor the results from dip sampling activity relating to stop and search, challenging GMP when anomalies and gaps are identified. The members of the witness group comprising community representatives and youth workers will be invited to form a task and finish group, the role of which will be to monitor progress in relation to the actions outlined within this report and other work to improve stop and search. The Commissioner s office will examine stop and search figures routinely, reporting findings to the Commissioner through the regular performance meetings and feeding the information to the task and finish group. Complaints Greater Manchester Police and the Commissioner s office to take steps to: better advertise and promote how people can complain about stop and search develop a step by step guide about how people can complain introduce third party reporting mechanisms for complaints, particularly targeted at young people, potentially through Independent Advisory Groups gain a better understanding of dissatisfaction with stop and search by seeking feedback through the GMP website The Commissioner s office to consider stop and search as a part of the work to develop an independent police complaints process. Good practice and transparency Greater Manchester Police to stress the need for officers issued with body worn video cameras to use this technology to record all stop and search encounters. The Commissioner s office will clarify and confirm the legal position with regard to individuals who are stopped and searched recording the encounter themselves.

6 Greater Manchester Police and the Commissioner s office to examine ways in which communities can: have greater involvement in the scrutiny of information on stop and search (including examination of stop and search records) and, assist in raising awareness of stop and search rights and how people can complain. By the end of August 2014, Greater Manchester Police to publish information and statistics about the use of stop and search and provide a mechanism for the public to provide observations and feedback. Greater Manchester Police to assess what action is required to ensure the force can demonstrate compliance with the Best Use of Stop and Search scheme. NEXT STEPS As a first step, the actions outlined and other issues which arose during the forum will be discussed by the Commissioner, Deputy Commissioner and Assistant Chief Constable Garry Shewan and agreement reached around timescales for delivery. The members of the community panel plus other local representatives will form a task and finish group. This group will scrutinise and challenge the degree of progress and improvements made by both Greater Manchester Police and the Commissioner s office. It is anticipated that, in November 2014, a further session will be convened to examine what has been achieved since the first forum meeting. This will be chaired by Tony Lloyd and involve the members of the community panel directly questioning senior officers from Greater Manchester Police about the steps taken to improve the conduct and monitoring of stop and search.