It is a clichéd truism that the police alone cannot arrest their way through every crime and societal problem. Indeed, the police can and should not be expected to do so. They have a critical role to play in ensuring our communities and neighbourhoods are safe and feel safe.
The interdependencies of local public services have never been more obvious than today as the police, local authorities, the health service and others grapple with what the late Professor John Stewart called the ‘wicked issues'.
Since I was first elected as Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) for Bedfordshire in May 2024, I have increasingly realised that, unless the police service is core to the local public service eco-system – and contributing as a committed partner alongside local authorities, the NHS and wider criminal justice partners including the CPS, probation, prison services and the courts – it will fail to achieve its own objectives. It will certainly not realise its obligations to local people.
A good concrete example of the need for collaboration has been evident this summer when we have been focused on the Home Office-led safer streets, safer town centre initiative. Its success has required action by the police and the local authorities. It has also required contributions from public health and the NHS.
My police and crime plan for my four-year tenure is based firmly on the pursuit of securing a safer and fairer county. It is underpinned by seven missions including putting victims at the heart of the criminal justice system, prevention, reinvigorating local policing, protecting women and children, tackling serious organised crime, securing an excellent police service and rebuilding the wider criminal justice system.
My ambition for a safer and fairer county requires a joint endeavour by the public and civil society to address the inequality, inequity and the deep rooted social and economic contributors to crime. It also requires strategic, financial and operational collaboration across the public sector. It needs bold political leadership.
A good concrete example of the need for collaboration has been evident this summer when we have been focused on the Home Office-led safer streets, safer town centre initiative. Its success has required action by the police and the local authorities. It has also required contributions from public health and the NHS.
Reducing re-offending requires probation, police, prisons, Department for Work and Pensions Job Centre Plus, public health, the NHS and local authority youth offending and housing services to collaborate.
The new Serious Violence Duty places duties on very many local public bodies. This duty is another example of why system-wide approaches are essential.
Protecting and safeguarding vulnerable people cannot be undertaken by any single agency. The police, local authorities and the NHS have specific roles and responsibilities, but above all they have a duty to collaborate. Agencies need to work to common standards with common systems. We must go further in this important area including improving data sharing and resources.
The Government, rightly in my view, is planning to introduce a new police performance framework to ensure consistency between police services and drive improvement. It is recognised that when assessing the performance of an individual police service it will be necessary to consider demographic factors, crime profiles and the wider performance of the public eco-system.
We do not have the mechanism currently to assess the latter, yet we once did. The much missed Audit Commission used to undertake comprehensive area assessments (CAAs). I strongly believe that government, local government, the police including PCCs or whatever follows us and wider public sector organisations should turn our collective attention to developing a modern system of these CAAs to view the quality of collaboration, as well as local wellbeing.
Given limited public funding, the growing demand across local public agencies and the need for greater collaboration, I also argue for revisiting the last Labour Government's Total Place initiative. We have a practical and moral duty to use the funds available most effectively in the public interest to maximise outcomes in every place.
As a former local authority leader and now a PCC I believe reintroducing a version of Total Place alongside a modern form of the CAA would benefit every local public body. These would strengthen the role of councils as leader of each place, facilitate better ‘joined up' governance and services, and enhance local accountability. They would underpin greater devolution and decentralisation.
Such a move would require the various inspectorates to work more closely together and for some new arrangement for undertaking the co-ordination role and lead on area assessments originally undertaken by the Audit Commission. David Walker and I previously called for such arrangements in a Fabian Society report (Prizing the Public Pound) in 2021. We proposed a new body for auditing spending in places (by a Place Audit Office), which would be responsible for local public bodies and services including councils, combined authorities, NHS trusts, academies, multi-academy trusts, transport authorities and the police, as well as for auditing the overall wellbeing of places and effective collaboration.
My experience in Bedfordshire has reinforced my view that collaboration, shared problem solving, pooled finances, staff and facilities are the way to drive public sector performance to make the county safer and fairer.
John Tizard is Police and Crime Commissioner for Bedfordshire and a former local authority leader
