Force Management Statement Summary 2022 - 2023

The last 12 months has been a challenging time for policing. Police legitimacy and the trust and confidence that policing holds with its communities has never been so fragile. In the wake of national events such as Carrick and the recently published Baroness Casey Report, it has been said that policing is at a critical point in its history.

Here in Cambridgeshire, we do not remain untouched by such cases, and this reinforces the importance of maintaining the high values and ethical standards that the public rightly expects.  We have done a huge amount of work in establishing our Culture Statement, invested in Leadership and Culture Workshops and enhanced our continuous professional development opportunities for senior leaders across the Constabulary.  This ensures we put the ‘How’ we do things, at the heart of our mission.  We have done this against the backdrop of increased demand, pressures put upon us by other partner agencies and an increasing expectation from the public.  We have however, been successful in increasing police officer numbers and I pay huge credit to all those involved in delivering our Police Uplift Target.

We continue to pay an active part in national agendas such as the Police Race Action Plan, Violence Against Women and Girls and of course, ensuring those who enter and remain within our Constabulary meet the highest ethical standards through the national reforms on vetting.

We police by consent, a concept at the very heart of the Peelian Principles, through which we strive to deliver a high-quality service. Cambridgeshire is a diverse and rapidly growing county; however, the Constabulary is meeting these challenges.  Areas of focus from our most recent HMICFRS PEEL Inspection Centre on responding to the public and investigations; a clear set of priorities which we must improve upon.

The challenges of inflation will influence our financial planning but equally we must be mindful of the rising cost-of-living issue that has a significant impact on our staff and especially on our young-in-service officers.

I stated last year that the ‘ask’ from central government has never been so evident and this continues through the revised Strategic Policing Requirement, Beating Crime Plan and an array of national crime and criminal justice measures.

As Chief Constable, I continue to have the support of the Police and Crime Commissioner as we work together to deliver the Police and Crime Plan alongside my Corporate Plan. The complexity of policing and demands placed upon it are continuing to grow and that is why having a Force Management Statement is so vital in ensuring the Constabulary has well evidenced plans to be fit for the future.

This year we have built on our successful business planning process; CamSTRA, which has proved pivotal in aligning business and financial planning to enhance our sustainable operating model. This will be critical given the financial challenges that sit across our medium-term financial strategy. The complexities of collaboration still provide challenges; however, I am confident the next 12 months will bring even greater alignment. This is imperative so that we continue to develop the services we offer, understand the demands we face versus the resources we have, to ensure we provide the highest quality of service to the communities of Cambridgeshire.

Signed:

Nick Dean, Chief Constable, Cambridgeshire Constabulary, 31 March 2023