Campus Police Officers
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Agenda Item No. 5 SOUTH AYRSHIRE COUNCIL REPORT BY DEPUTE CHIEF EXECUTIVE AND DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT, SAFETY AND REGULATION AND DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION, CULTURE AND LIFELONG LEARNING TO COUNCIL MEETING OF 8TH NOVEMBER 2007 SUBJECT: School Campus Police Officers 1. Purpose. To introduce a presentation from Strathclyde Police on the role of the Campus Police Officer, to provide additional information on the consultation process and to consider a report previously submitted to the Leadership Panel of 29th August 2007. 2. Background. The Leadership Panel at its meeting on 29th August 2007 agreed to delay making further recommendations on the issue of Campus Police Officers in schools in order to:- • receive a presentation from Strathclyde Police on the role of the Campus Police Officer • allow further consultation with pupils, parents, teachers and community members on the proposal, and • refer the enclosed report for a decision to be taken by the full Council in November 2007 3. Considerations. Pupils, teachers, parents and residents in the immediate school area have now been consulted on the proposal to introduce Campus Police Officers into the selected schools. All were given additional information on the proposed role of the officers and the impact that was expected as a result. Pupils in Marr College and Kyle Academy were also given a presentation by an existing Campus Police Officer from North Ayrshire. The results were very strongly in favour of the proposal as is demonstrated in the following tables:- Kyle Academy Kyle Academy - 500 responses Yes No Don't Know No. surveyed Yes Parents 98% 2% 0% 113 93% Pupils 89% 11% 0% 302 Don't Teachers 97% 0% 3% 63 Know 0% Community 100% 0% 0% 22 No Total 93% 7% 0% 500 7% Belmont Academy Yes No Don't Know No. surveyed Belmont Academy - 449 responses Yes Parents 93% 4% 3% 351 94% Pupils -- - 0 Teachers 99% 0% 1% 70 Don't Community 89% 7% 4% 28 Know 3% Total 94% 3% 3% 449 No 3% Ayr Academy Ayr Academy - 201 responses Yes No Don't Know No. surveyed Yes, Parents 99% 1% 1% 158 100% Pupils -- - 0 Don't Teachers 100% 0% 0% 27 Know , 0% Community 100% 0% 0% 16 No, 0% Total 100% 0% 0% 201 Marr College Marr College - 690 responses Yes No Don't Know No. surveyed Parents 96% 4% 0% 303 Yes, 96% Pupils 94% 6% 0% 292 Teachers 100% 0% 0% 69 Don't Know , 0% Community 100% 0% 0% 26 Total 96% 4% 0% 690 No, 4% 4. Resource Implications. These are as detailed in the attached report to the Leadership Panel. Campus Police Officers in schools would be an additional community policing resource. There will be no reduction to the core service provided by the police. 5. Results of Public Consultation. These are outlined above and in the attached report to the Leadership Panel. 6. Recommendations. It is recommended that the Council hears the presentation by Strathclyde Police and approves the recommendations as detailed in the attached report referred by the Leadership Panel. Background Papers. Campus Police Officers Group Minutes Campus Police Question & Answer Paper – Strathclyde Police Person to Contact. Mike McCabe, Director Education Culture and Life Long Learning County Buildings, Ayr (tel. 612080) Louise Fyfe, Community Safety Manager, County Buildings, Ayr (tel. 616615), Date. 25th October 2007 SOUTH AYRSHIRE COUNCIL REPORT BY DEPUTE CHIEF EXECUTIVE AND DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT, SAFETY AND REGULATION AND DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION, CULTURE AND LIFELONG LEARNING TO LEADERSHIP PANEL OF 29th AUGUST 2007 SUBJECT: School Campus Police Officers 1. Purpose. i. To advise the Leadership Panel of the action taken to address the points raised by the Learning and Prosperity Standing Scrutiny Panel at its meeting on 12th July 2007. 2. Background. i. The learning and Prosperity Standing Scrutiny Panel, at its meeting on 12th July 2007, considered a joint report by the Depute Chief Executive and Director of Development, Safety and Regulation, the Director of Education, Culture and Lifelong Learning and the Director of Social Work, Housing and Health, on a Community Planning initiative to introduce Campus Police Officers into selected schools in South Ayrshire. The report (appendix 1) was approved by the Leadership Panel on 3rd July 2007. A briefing paper is included to update the Panel on the initiative (appendix 2) ii. The Learning and Prosperity Standing Scrutiny Panel decided that the item should be referred back to the Leadership Panel with the recommendation that a decision be deferred until the following points had been addressed: - • Full consultation with parents; • Establishing clear evaluation criteria; • Consideration of application of scheme to all schools; and • Joint agreement with the Police on future support / funding. 3. Considerations. i. A multi-agency steering group has been leading in the development of the Campus Police Officers initiative. This steering group consists of the Director of Education, Culture and Lifelong Learning, the Community Policing Inspector, the Community Safety Manager, the Antisocial Behaviour Team Coordinator, the Head Teacher of Kyle Academy, the Regeneration Manager and the Lifelong Learning Project Coordinator. The Head Teachers from Ayr Academy, Belmont Academy and Marr College have also been involved in the steering group, as have police officers from North Ayrshire Division and Strathclyde’s Violence Reduction Unit. The group has considered the points raised by the Scrutiny Panel and are confident they are being addressed as follows. ii. Full consultation with parents. The Head Teachers of the schools involved in the Campus Police Officers Project were involved in the development of the proposal and were consulted about the best way to involve pupils, teachers and parents/carers in developing the initiative. It was agreed that each school would make sure there was initial consultation before the end of the school term and that further, more detailed consultation would take place once the proposal was approved by the Leadership Panel. Initial consultation was to establish what pupils, teachers and parents/carers thought about the general principal of having Campus Police Officers in the schools and to address any immediate concerns they might have. These views are also important in establishing a base line for evaluation. A letter was drafted by the steering group (appendix 3) and was given to all Head Teachers for circulation. All schools confirmed a letter had been issued before the end of term. Details of the consultation process and results are attached. (appendix 4) iii. Establishing clear evaluation criteria. A detailed analysis of youth incidents in and around schools was done to establish which schools should be involved in the initiative. A further analysis was done to establish a base line for evaluation of the initiative. (appendix 5) All youth disorder cases from the antisocial behaviour and the police STORM incidents databases were analysed between 1st Sept 2006 and 30th June 2007. Referrals from schools to the Antisocial Behaviour Team were also analysed and will form part of the baseline information for evaluation. Data from the individual schools initial consultation gives a baseline for evaluating changes in attitudes and perception. Some of this data has already been gathered and the rest will follow after the start of the new term. It was envisaged the Campus Police Officers would be involved in the development of establishing other baseline information but amended timescales will mean this will be done by members of the steering group. (appendix 6) iv. Consideration of application of scheme to other schools. Strathclyde Violence Reduction Unit is supportive of the introduction of Campus Police Officers and is researching good practice with a view to making recommendations on the future development of the role within Strathclyde. It is anticipated that demand will increase as it becomes clearer that the role of the Campus Police Officer provides a positive and effective contribution to the local community. It is unlikely that every school in Strathclyde will require a Campus Officer and the Violence Reduction Unit suggests that profiles of the individual school catchment areas should be used to determine need. The initial need in South Ayrshire has been determined as Kyle Academy, Belmont Academy, Ayr Academy and Marr College. However, if the initiative proves to be as successful as anticipated then other schools will be reviewed for extension of the initiative. v. Joint agreement with the police on future support / funding. The Police are fully supportive of the initiative and a letter of support is included to demonstrate their commitment to fund 50% of the costs. (appendix 7) 4. Resource Implications. The resource implications for this initiative remain as reported to the Leadership Panel on 3rd July and are detailed below: i. Costs for the four police officers for one year will be £120,000. The Police have agreed to provide 50% of the funding for this initiative, and would like to see it developed as a full time initiative. ii. £15,000 of funding for specific projects and activities developed by the police officers will be provided by the Antisocial Behaviour budget for 2007/08, and the individual schools will be asked to make a similar contribution. iii. £60,000 p.a. match funding from South Ayrshire Council would allow this initiative to be developed. iv. The project will be managed by a steering group involving partners, pupils and community representatives. Development work will require to be undertaken to establish and share information on the protocols and operational procedures that will be critical to maximising the success of the initiative. 5. Results of Public Consultation. The consultation process is as detailed in the report and appendix 4 6. Recommendations. It is recommended that £60,000 is approved as a contingency draw to allow this important Community Planning initiative to be progressed.