Hampshire PEEL 2017

Hampshire Constabulary is good at treating the people it serves with fairness and respect. Senior officers act as role models and ensure that the workforce understand the importance of treating people with fairness and respect in all aspects of their work. The workforce use communication skills effectively in their day-to-day interactions with the public, but the force needs to ensure that its workforce have a consistent understanding of unconscious bias and how it may affect their decision making.

Hampshire Constabulary is improving its internal scrutiny of the use of force so that it can use its data to identify trends and lessons to be learned. The force also looks for any unfairness in its use of stop and search. Members of the workforce understand how to use coercive powers such as arrest and stop and search in accordance with the law and in a fair and respectful way.

The force makes good use of external groups to scrutinise activities such as stop and search and also seeks feedback from members of the public through its website and social media. However, the force could provide more structured training for members of independent advisory groups so that they can undertake their role effectively.

Hampshire Constabulary is good at ensuring that its workforce behaves ethically and lawfully. Leaders are good role models and promote the force’s values. The workforce are well informed about ethics and ethical decision making. The ethics committee identifies lessons learned, which are then shared with the workforce. However, the workforce’s awareness of the committee’s work could be improved. The force is yet to resolve its backlog in vetting checks, but plans to do so by early 2018.

The force provides the public with clear and accessible information about how to make a complaint. This is available on its website and through social media, as well as on posters and leaflets in public areas in force buildings. It uses innovative methods to encourage complaints from communities that may need extra support and those less likely to make a complaint. Generally, the force works well with those who have made complaints and updates them on progress, although it could improve the clarity of its letters to complainants about the results of its investigations.

The workforce understand the negative effect of discriminatory behaviour. Overall, the force’s approach to dealing with complaints of discrimination is satisfactory, but it needs to make sure that it consistently refers complaints of discriminatory behaviour to the IPCC, in line with current guidelines.

Hampshire Constabulary treats its workforce with fairness and respect. Leaders are open to challenge and encourage feedback. The force undertakes workforce surveys to identify and resolve workforce concerns and amends its policies where appropriate. It also maintains regular contact with staff associations and networks.

The force is committed to dealing with any disproportionality in its treatment of its workforce, including initial recruitment and all aspects of progression. Its recent success in recruiting members of the BAME community is positive. The force should combine its procedures for assessing the seriousness of misconduct cases to make sure that police officers and police staff are treated equally when under investigation.

Hampshire Constabulary has a positive approach to promoting workforce wellbeing. Managers have received training to help them identify and deal effectively with staff welfare matters. The workforce can access a wide range of wellbeing support through the intranet, line managers or a helpline.

The force has made progress in how it manages and develops individual performance. It has introduced a new approach to performance appraisal, but this is paper-based, meaning that it is not easy for the force to have an overview of how effectively performance is managed. The force has plans to address this.

Hampshire Constabulary has made good use of the direct entry routes into leadership positions. However, overall, its approach to identifying high-potential members of the workforce is inconsistent. The force’s new procedure for selecting staff for promotion is effective, and is seen as fair and open by the workforce.