West Midlands Police are looking at their procurement – whether they should procure locally for services, and whether to introduce the ‘living wage’ across the force. So a business summit in Birmingham, held by West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) David Jamieson, heard on Monday night, January 18.
In reply to a question from the floor by Professional Security, Mark Kenyon, the PCC’s chief finance officer, confirmed that would include contractors. Kenyon gave a presentation to the event on the force’s budgeting, which next year will be about £554.3m. WMP complains that it’s suffering more from austerity cuts than some other forces due to the way central Government – which provides forces with most of their money, rather than local government – allocates money.
Earlier the PCC, a former Labour MP, spoke of how ‘crime is not falling, it is changing’, pointing to new sorts of crimes – that are complex and time-consuming to investigate, such as child sexual exploitation, online grooming, and cyber-fraud. More in the March 2016 print issue of Professional Security magazine.
Other speakers were Chief Supt Sally Bourner, who gave an update on the force’s WMP2020 Programme, with the consultancy Accenture. The ‘strategic partnership’, nearly two years in the making, was signed in July 2014, covering everything from citizen satisfaction to reduction in demand and in crime. The work began with an assessment of the force’s work, and a ‘blueprint’ launched in March 2015.
Two presentations on cyber-crime followed, by Chief Insp Iain Donnelly, senior intelligence manager at WMP, on the police’s response to cybercrime at a local and regional and national level; and by the fraudster turned counter-fraud consultant and speaker Tony Sales. To view presentations, visit http://www.westmidlands-pcc.gov.uk/consultation/annual-business-summit,-18-january-2016.
Victims of crime project
A West Midlands-based consultancy RISC Associates is working with the PCC on a project for businesses who have been victims of crime. If it’s a success in the Birmingham City Council area, it’ll be rolled out across the force area. Workshops are offered free on retail loss prevention awareness; personal security and robbery awareness; conflict resolution; and cyber security awareness. Visit www.riscassociates.co.uk/bizcrime. Or ask through a Business Improvement District (BID).
About the force
After the Met and Police Scotland, West Midlands Police is the UK’s third largest police force.
Photo by Mark Rowe; outside the redeveloped New Street station, Birmingham.
