Casey Report reinforces the urgency of our mission

The report follows an extensive review by Baroness Casey of Blackstock.

Its findings will be taken forward to inform and shape an ambitious plan to reform and rebuild trust while delivering for Londoners.

The review was commissioned in October 2021 following the murder of Sarah Everard by a serving officer.

Baroness Casey was asked to examine the standards of behaviour and internal culture of the Met and to make recommendations on the actions required.

Her final report, published on Tuesday, 21 March explores a wide range of issues including the Met’s organisation, its support for officers and staff, discrimination, standards, its approach to protecting women and children and its wider operational effectiveness.

The Met have responded to the report, saying it must be a 'catalyst for police reform'.

 

National Police Chiefs' Council Chair Martin Hewitt said: 

“Baroness Louise Casey’s review of the Metropolitan Police contains truly awful details and systemic failings. It will bring out the strongest of feelings. 

“I am confident that Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley’s leadership team and the committed, professional majority of officers and staff will succeed in turning the failings around and create the police service London deserves.

“All police chiefs have committed to change to become actively anti-racist. Equally we want a police service that is anti-misogynistic, anti-homophobic and anti-discrimination of any kind.  

“The review reinforces once again the urgency of our current mission across policing to lift the stones and root corrupt individuals and unacceptable behaviour out of policing, alongside delivering the long term, sustainable improvements to standards, vetting and misconduct processes we have promised. We expect to be judged on the results the public and our people see. 

“I share the Commissioner’s view the report must be a catalyst for making policing better, not pillorying the good majority of police officers and staff. It is a substantial and important report, I will take time to consider its findings and recommendations for their implications beyond London.” 

 

National action on standards:

 

Identifying wrongdoing 

Every force has a violence against women and girls (VAWG) action plan, in line with the national VAWG framework, that has seen them strengthen reporting routes and review allegations of sexual misconduct or domestic abuse against officers.   

This is supplemented by a nationally coordinated process to check all police officers and staff against the Police National Database (PND) to identify any intelligence or allegations by September 2023 that need further investigation and to build the capability to automate checks of intelligence on a continuous basis.   

Police forces have been strengthening their counter corruption units and increasing proactive intelligence gathering and investigations in line with recommendations from His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS).  

 

Strengthening vetting and misconduct investigations 

All police forces are addressing failings in systems, processes and decision-making identified by HMICFRS in its review on vetting and misconduct; issues uncovered in a super-complaint about police perpetrated domestic abuse. 

Following recommendations from a NPCC and College of Policing learning review published in October 2022, police forces are ensuring professional standards departments have a good working knowledge of current criminal investigation practice and access to expertise from rape and sexual assault investigators. They are also acting to ensure criminal and misconduct investigations run in parallel and there is effective joint working when misconduct and criminal investigations are being conducted by different teams.  

 

Toughening sanctions 

Forces are following guidance from the College of Policing updated in August 2022, which strengthens the guidance to misconduct decision makers on removing those who betray police values and treats any misconduct related to VAWG or discrimination with the utmost severity. 

NPCC has called on all chief constables to take every possible step to root out those who do not uphold our standards, including:  

• Chairing accelerated hearings wherever the grounds are met (Recent Home Office data showed that in 95% of these hearings, the officer was sacked by their chief constable, or would have been if they were still serving when the hearing happened.)
• Making submissions to the chairs of those independent panels, wherever appropriate, so that sanctions always meet the gravity of an offence.  
• Seeking judicial review of decisions where appropriate. 

 

Police Race Action Plan

The Police Race Action Plan was published in May 2022 and all police chiefs in England and Wales are committed to delivering against it. It aims to address race disparities affecting Black people and change a legacy of distrust.  

• A survey was launched, which invited members of the public, individual police officers and staff, and representatives from policing and other organisations, to share their thoughts on the Plan. The survey received more than 5,000 responses, of which 10 per cent were from Black or Black British or mixed Black heritage respondents.  

• The Independent Scrutiny and Oversight Board (ISOB) led by Barrister Abimbola Johnson also submitted feedback on the Plan, and we received individual responses from a number of national race equity groups and organisations with an interest in and experience in race issues. 

• Every police force in England and Wales collated feedback on the Plan from their officers and staff, stakeholders, and communities, which is vital in gathering a wide range of views from across policing. 

• All feedback has been considered and will shape the plan’s implementation.

• A number of police forces have been identified as ‘icebreaker’ forces. They are focusing on priority actions to develop more effective and legitimate policing activities across England and Wales.

 

Action on Violence Against Women and Girls

On December 2021, the NPCC and College of Policing set out priority actions for all police forces in England and Wales to bring consistently high standards to the police response to violence against women and girls.  It includes action to:

• Expand and enhance processes for listening to women and girls, actively seek the views of those who have little or no trust in policing and involve them in scrutinising their performance on VAWG.
• Proactively identify individuals who pose the highest risk of harm to women and girls, and actively manage those individuals to prevent or reduce offending.
• Increased use of protective and preventative tools and orders, such as domestic violence protection orders and stalking protection orders, and swifter action on breaches.

The first assessment of police performance was published last week providing a critical baseline based on data gathered between October 2021 and March 2022. Subsequent national assessments will be published annually. 

Soteria Bluestone has seen policing working with independent academics to uncover the deep rooted and systemic issues within policing to achieve the wholescale in rape and sexual offences investigation. The programme will produce a new operating model for investigating rape this summer.