Policing Large Scale Disorder: Lessons from the disturbances of ...

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Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev w7 — Positive relationships between people from different backgrounds in the workplace, schools and other institutions.” CIC (2007). There are further definitions provided by the Local Government Association (LGA) (2002) and Communities and Local Government (CLG) (2007). Smikle’s (2010) research “What does community cohesion mean to policing?” identifies that most police services in England and Wales (94%), have no policy on “Community Cohesion”, furthermore, that there was no single agreed definition, limited training and that 67% of the respondents had a fair/poor understanding of the term. The absence or lack of community cohesion as an impact on people to have the ability to capacity build and to prevent and manage tensions. Zero Tolerance The concept of zero tolerance means many things to many people, the notion that any deviation from the rule of law would be dealt with robustly minimizes the opportunity for officers and staff to use discretion or to treat individuals as individuals. The popular belief was that this approach in New York was all positive, this is incorrect. During this period in 1997 Abner Louima a Haitian man who was assaulted, brutalized and forcibly sodomized with the handle of a bathroom plunger by New York City police officers after being arrested outside a Brooklyn nightclub. We believe that, there is a real risk that unlawful actions including excessive use of force by police officers will be become a part of every day life for communities if a programme with the term “Zero tolerance” were to be implemented. The excessive use of Section 60 search powers coupled with the very low arrest rates is indicative of a generalized random approach to detect crime that alienates innocent members of the public. Part of the fundamental aspects of the Peelian principles relates to the effectiveness of the police: “Whether the police are effective is not measured on the number of arrests, but on the lack of crime. Above all else, an effective authority figure knows trust and accountability are paramount. Hence, Peel’s most often quoted principle: The police are the public and the public are the police” (Lentz & Chaires, 2007). Targeted, intelligence led operations with appropriate checks and balances will lead to greater support for policing and police activities. The firm policing and community activity that brought the disturbances to an end are wholly supported by the NBPA. The NBPA acknowledge the expertise from police specialists from outside of the UK, we acknowledge however that a large number of external policing specialists operate in very different environments. Our police service operates in a consensual policing environment, in the main, without firearms (handguns or rifles). The tactics which can legitimately be employed in this environment may not necessarily translate when imported from places such as the USA. We do not automatically discount external advice, in fact we welcome the concept of multi-point entry into the police service which should improve minority representation (NBPA Submission to Winsor). Dhani and Kaiza (2011) Police service strength data shows an increase in minority ethnic officers by 0.2% since 2010. However, there is actually a quantative reduction in minority ethnic officers from 2010. More worryingly, the number of ACPO minority ethnic officers has reduced from nine to three over the same period. Since its’ inception the NBPA has and continues to support recruitment and progression initiatives, including the National Policing Improvements Agency (NPIA) extension of National Senior Careers Advisory Service (NSACAS) support to Chief Inspectors, supporting the High Potential Development Scheme (HPDS) through circulations, executive meetings and advertisements on the NBPA website. The shockingly low representation of BME women in policing is highlighted in the Gittens report form 2004, reinforced by the fact that there has only ever been one BME female officer in ACPO in the history of policing, this is quite frankly a disgrace. The public, especially young people, need to see role models within policing that they can identify with and see that they too can succeed within that environment. The NBPA women’s’ group has highlighted the need for mentors and support for BME officers and staff. According to Peel’s principles, “the police are the public and the public are the police” this concept is linked to the trust and confidence agenda. The homogeneity of the police service limits the nature and scope of effective policing, the ability to function in diverse environments can be and has been compromised by the lack of diversity (surveillance, counter terrorism, vice investigations, test purchasing, police corruption, covert operations and Operation Trident). NBPA Response to the Riots 2011 In support of the policing of the initial disturbances the NBPA publicly denounced the violence circulating a press release to the media (2011 Tottenham riots). This was closely followed by a round table discussion with local BPAs in London, Bristol, West Midlands, Manchester and Liverpool as it was clear to us that the trouble was likely to move beyond the capital:
Ev w8 Home Affairs Committee: Evidence — Early liaison with Chief Officers in force. — Community meetings and preventative solutions. — Youth programmes accessed to cascade information to prevent young people being swept up in the disturbances. — Social media used to discourage anti-social and criminal behaviour. — We suggest that having social media blocked is not the best way forward. We recognise the importance of such a decision and would welcome this to be done on a voluntary basis by the service provider as opposed to one mandated through legislation. These regional meetings allowed other organisations and stakeholders to prepare for likely disorder and ensured that pro-active measure could and were taken which minimised the spread of violence. These meetings were minuted, confirming the positive contributions BPAs around the UK make to policing. In addition to the above the NBPA attended Community tension meetings at New Scotland Yard with DAC Stephen Kavanagh, Baroness Warsi, Cindy Butts, Strategic Alliance of Communities Rejecting Youth Destruction (SACRYD) and other community members to discuss preventative measures and solutions to the disturbances. A further meeting took place at Portcullis House on Wednesday 10 August 2011 with the Rt Hon Tom Brake MP, Baroness Hussein-Ece, Councillor Duwayne Brookes, Supt Leroy Logan MBE, Bevan Powell MBE, DCI Shab Choudhury, DS Wendell Henry. We discussed the causes and impact of the riots and suggested areas that would mitigate and prevent further unrest which included the Met BPA VOYAGE programme and the NBPA Trust and Confidence Task Force proposal (NBPA press release, 2011). The NBPA and local BPAs continues to meet with community members and stakeholders as we believe that it is the right thing to do. Summary — Trust and confidence is again a critical issue in police and community relationships. — The police service needs to maintain a corporate memory which will prevent history repeating itself. — It is absolutely crucial that information provided by the police service and partner agencies is accurate and timely. — Community Cohesion (CoCo) needs to be a crucial component of the policing lexicon with policies which support the ethos of CoCo. — Phrases such as “Zero tolerance” should be avoided unless it is part of a specific strategy that has been appropriately consulted on, agreed and resourced. — Specialists from outside of UK policing are able to give an alternative perspective which need to be contextualised. — The NBPA to be viewed and utilised as a full partner in improving equality issues within the police service—The Police service strength data 2011 (Dhani and Kaiza) and NPIA Equality in employment reports highlight the lack of progress on senior BME officers. — The NBPA and local BPAs will continue working with community groups developing programmes aimed at young people. — We recommend the establishment of a national Trust and Confidence forum, to be liked with the NBPA trust and confidence task force, in partnership with community groups, internal and external stakeholders. — The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) has acknowledge the errors in relation to verbal disclosures surrounding the Duggan briefings—there is currently a serious risk of public confidence in the IPCC deteriorating if clear communication protocols are not adhered to. References Benyon, J; Solomos, J (eds) (1987). The Roots of Urban Unrest. Oxford: Pergamon Press. Cantle, T (2001). Community Cohesion: A Report of the Independent Review Team. London: Home Office. Cantle (2004). The End of Parallel Lives? Final Report of the Community Cohesion Panel. London: Home Office. Cantle, T (2005). Community Cohesion: a new framework for race and diversity. London, Palgrave. Commission for Integration and Cohesion (CIC) (2007). Our Shared Future. London: DCLG. Communities and Local Government (2007). What Works’ in Community Cohesion. London: CLG. Crichlow (2009). National Black Police Association—The Post Stephen Lawrence decade. Manchester: GMP.
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