The Charter For Early Intervention In Policing
The Charter for Early Intervention in Policing
North Wales Police join Forces in collaborating to intervene earlier to prevent crime and wider social problems
Representatives of 20 police forces, including North Wales Police, will meet in London today (30/6) to discuss how the police can get involved earlier and more effectively to identify and intervene with children and families needing help, rather than picking up the pieces.
Analysis by the Early Intervention Foundation has found that dealing with crime and anti-social behaviour costs public services an estimated £5.2 billion a year – £1.8 billion of which falls to the police. On top of this, growing numbers of police call outs are related to social problems such as domestic violence, children going missing, mental health and other welfare concerns.
The Early Intervention Foundation has been running an ‘Early Intervention Academy for Police Leaders’ since September last year with support from the Home Office and the College of Policing. 24 senior police from across England and Wales were selected through a competitive process to work with national experts to develop plans they can take forward in their individual forces to ensure that the children and families at risk receive the right help at the earliest opportunity.
The academy delegates will today meet with Rt Hon Mike Penning MP, Minister of State for Policing, Fire, and Criminal Justice and Victims, their Chief Officers, PCC’s and other national leaders to unveil their ‘Charter for Early Intervention in Policing’ and ask for national backing for their work.
The charter sets out the steps needed to help police officers across England and Wales prevent crime and other social problems by intervening early to help children and families.
This includes equipping frontline police and PCSO’s to respond to wider problems and not just the issue that they are called out to, to deliver effective early intervention approaches and to share information and work collaboratively with other agencies such as health and children’s services.
Donna Molloy, EIF Director of Dissemination, said:
“The police are often the first agency to spot parents, children or families needing help and it is vital that they are equipped to work alongside health and children’s services, schools and others at spotting risks and ensure the right support is given at the earliest opportunity.
“The Early Intervention Academy for Police Leaders has chimed with the mood of many forces who increasingly recognise that working differently is the only way to reduce demand on the police. That is not about the police doing everything but about frontline police being professionally curious and working in partnership to make sure that when they identify children, young people or families who need support, there is an effective response.
“Rather than 43 forces working it out for themselves we have brought together those at the cutting edge of this important agenda. The EIF academy members now represent an important force for change in policing. We hope their work gets the backing it deserves.’
Andy Rhodes, Deputy Chief Constable in Lancashire who ran the first masterclass on the EIF academy said:
“The police have a responsibility to work across the system with a shared purpose – to intervene early so that we protect the vulnerable in society and avoid the false economy of simply becoming a reactive service.
“For the majority of the public these issues are hidden out of sight. Through this academy, the EIF has brought this into sharp focus and developed our thinking about what this means for policing.
“The leaders on the EIF Academy have demonstrated that not only do they understand what needs to be done but also that they are driven by their values.”
North Wales Police leads Supt. Sian Beck and CI Simon Barrasford said “Recognising when families require support to prevent problems from escalating and the lives of children being adversely affected is an important aspect of the work of officers and PCSOs. We already work with a range of partners and third sector organisations across North Wales and the work of the academy will now assist us in the further development of early intervention in policing”.
1. The Early Intervention Foundation is a charity and a What Works Centre. Its mission is to ensure all children achieve their full potential by identifying those at risk and providing effective early support.
2. The ‘Early Intervention Academy for Police Leaders was launched in July 2015 in partnership with the Home Office and College of Policing. It has heard from national experts, accessed the latest evidence base on early intervention and shared ideas to enable participants to develop practical plans that they can take back to their chief officers and implement in their forces and with their partners.
3. The Police forces represented in the EIF academy are: Avon and Somerset, Bedfordshire, Devon and Cornwall, Dorset, Durham, Essex, Gloucestershire, Greater Manchester, Hampshire, Humberside, Lancashire, Norfolk, North Wales, North Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire, Northamptonshire, Staffordshire (Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner), Thames Valley, West Midlands, Metropolitan Police Service.
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