Actions Underway and Next Steps

Overall, the findings of the colleague engagement align well with the identified areas of focus for the sex equality and tackling misogyny group supported by a range of progress to date. It is also recognised that the insights correlate and align with work that is underway, led by the ACC Policing Together and Strategic Oversight Board. This particularly applies to training, mechanisms for reporting and policy and procedures.

It is recognised that some of the actions to enable change will require a focus over the medium and longer term to ensure the positive impacts aspired to. Where it is possible to provide early resolution to concerns raised this is being progressed at pace, however, embedding some areas of culture change will require a longer period of sustained effort and focus. This will continue to be monitored as plans are implemented and the impacts of work underway is measured. It is also likely as work in this area continues to be an area of focus that we could see an increase in reporting of concerns. It will be important that the reasons for concerns and the resolution/outcomes are captured to enable the service to continue to evidence the change in approach to both recognising and resolving issues at an early stage in a supportive manner. Change activities will include empowering leaders across the service to embed good practice, ensuring reports are dealt with promptly and in a supportive manner, and the capturing of data and feedback to improve outcomes and to communicate progress to officers and staff.

Moving forwards the approach to support and enable change, based on the insights, will be progressed as follows:

Sex Equality and Tackling Misogyny Oversight Board – the Board will be chaired by DCC Malcolm Graham and meet three times a year to agree plans and oversee progress.

Sex Equality and Tackling Misogyny Delivery Group – a new sub-group will be chaired by ACC Emma Bond and developed to support, enable and drive forward a range of key change activities that respond to the insights. The group will meet every two months with the first meeting held on 24 May 2023.

Leadership and Engagement – the insights reflect the need for ownership and responsibility for areas of change to sit with leaders, managers and supervisors across the service. At present, the actions are being driven by the working group, however, it is proposed that the Delivery Group will continue to design, develop and support change with an expectation that leaders across the service will own, promote, ensure and embed good practice.

This commenced with a round of engagement to share the insights and consider actions with all Portfolio Boards from March/April 2023, and thereafter all Senior and Divisional Management Teams across the service including all national and local divisions, led by DCC Graham and leads from the Delivery Group. Additional materials have been developed in support of this activity. Each leadership team is being encouraged and supported to align improvement actions within their existing People Plans and People Board structures to ensure important considerations are embedded within business as usual for action and oversight.

Colleagues shared their ideas and feedback at a dedicated, inclusive workshop session on Tuesday 23 May. This is being brought together to underpin, inform and shape a range of actions going forwards.

In addition, a wider ongoing dialogue will be underway shortly, aligned to Your Leadership Matters. The engagement will enable ongoing conversations with colleagues who can be actively involved and:

Encourage interaction between everyone and facilitate exchange of ideas and feedback, respectful of lived experience.

Create opportunities for colleagues to hold each other to account.

Understand how things are changing, how things are getting better, and what we still need to work on.

Communications – An underpinning communications strategy has been developed and captures correlation with the Violence against Women and Girls Strategy and aligns with the overall Policing Together communications approach.

Data and Insights – this work is progressing at pace to ensure that the impact of the changes led by the group are evidenced and understood over time and the initial survey findings will be used as a baseline. There will be close alignment to the reporting framework set out in Equally Safe and the work to continue to develop measures in support of Policing Together.

Actions being progressed by the Delivery Group will be aligned with the implementation planning and monitoring arrangements for Policing Together. This will ensure updates on progress can be monitored by the Policing Together Strategic Oversight Board, SLB and SPA in one cohesive reporting structure going forwards.