Metropolitan PEEL 2014

HMIC is assured that the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) is using a range of methods to understand the demand placed on its services and the consequences of that demand e.g., the numbers of staff required for crime investigation. The MPS has an efficient way of aligning staff to emerging threats and retaining them in critical posts. The force has maintained its push to reduce crime and improve victim satisfaction. It is recognised that securing satisfaction from victims of crime in the capital is challenging. The MPS is introducing ever more innovative means of interacting with the public, ranging from greater use of social media to replacing traditional police station front counters with more flexible drop-in centres.

The force is on track to meet the requirements of the spending review and is putting in place the changes necessary to enable it to respond to future financial pressures. In particular, it is considering what is necessary now, in order to prepare itself to meet its expected budget over the next four years. The successful implementation of the ‘Met Change’ programme and the estate and information technology strategies are crucial for achieving future financial stability.

The Metropolitan Police Service’s (MPS) ambitious change programme began to alter the way neighbourhood policing is provided in 2013. It is continuing with this programme, changing the way it provides policing locally and across London. The MPS is experiencing particular challenges in achieving cultural change. The proportion of police officers on the frontline is growing. The way the force makes use of the expertise and knowledge of volunteers is increasingly important. The force is achieving the required savings by reducing its pay and non-pay costs; the estates strategy is supporting the change programme and investment in new technology is aimed at reducing costs further, while improving force efficiencies.