Police and Crime Commissioners
The Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act gained royal ascent on September 15th 2011. The major reform within this Act is the replacement of Police Authorities with Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) as the governance bodies for the 43 police forces in England and Wales. Elections will take place in each force area on 15th November 2012, with them formally taking over from Police Authorities on 22nd November 2012. The duties of the PCC will be to
- appoint (and dismiss) the Chief Constable
- hold the Chief Constable to account
- produce a 5 year Police and Crime Plan (Plan)
- set the annual precept and budget
- publish an annual report
- commission activities though the allocation of Home Office funding
- approve mergers of, and enable joint working between, Community Safety Partnerships.
The PCC will have to produce a Plan, in agreement with the Chief Constable and a Police and Crime Panel (PCP), by the end of March 2012. In Warwickshire, the PCP will consist of 10 elected members, including at least one representative from each district/borough council in the county and one from Warwickshire County Council, and two co-opted members. The duties of PCP will be to
- scrutinize the actions and decisions of the PCC
- review and make recommendations on the draft Police and Crime Plan and Annual Report
- require PCC and staff to attend PCP meetings
- deal with complaints about the conduct of the PCC
- appoint an acting PCC from the PCC’s staff if PCC is incapacitated or resigns
- review expenditure proposals – can veto precept with 2/3 vote
- veto Chief Constable appointment with a 2/3 vote.
It is expected that the PCP will be established by the summer of 2012.
This web page will be updated as information becomes available. We have broken down the information into the following categories:
The Home Office has established a national programme consisting of 13 projects, which will enable a ‘seamless’ transition from Police Authorities to PCCs. This programme is addressing a wide range of issues, including to
- induct new PCCs, including raising awareness of electoral candidates to the role of PCC and the function of their office.
- establish protocols of engagement between PCCs, Chief Constables and PCPs
- develop commissioning processes that are most effective within each Force Area
- explore the crime element within the role of a PCC
- scope the potential relationships between the PCC and external partners
- improve the skills of PCCs and his/her staff to undertake their new role efficiently and effectively.
