Nottinghamshire PEEL 2018
Efficiency
How efficiently does the force operate and how sustainable are its services to the public?
How well does the force use its resources to meet the demand it faces?
Areas for improvement
- The force should ensure that its prioritisation and allocation of demand takes full account of the risks of inadvertently suppressing demand. The force should make sure it is fully aware of officer and staff workload allocating incidents and deploying resource. The force needs to better understand how pressures placed on other organisations influences its current demand.
- The force should ensure that its new governance arrangements for managing current and future demand track benefits, including how it has reinvested savings.
- The force should undertake appropriate activities to understand fully its workforce’s capabilities, identify any gaps, and put plans in place to address these gaps.
Nottinghamshire Police needs to improve how it meets current demands and uses its resources.
The force needs to understand demand better and review a wider range of data. It is working with other organisations to improve this. Planned recruitment of more officers will help it manage demand. It should make sure it understands people’s workloads before increasing them.
The force is getting better at understanding that good processes help reduce demand and make the most of resources. It is introducing systems to reduce waste, but needs its workforce to share this approach. The force needs to review its systems to make sure they don’t accidentally hide demand or introduce delays.
The force works with a range of organisations, which helps them all use their resources more effectively and provide better services. But it needs to understand the effect that pressures on other organisations has on its own demand. It has decided to come out of one collaboration. It isn’t clear whether this is a good decision.
The force willingly tries new approaches, including better use of technology. It should check that it is getting the benefits of changes it makes. It should also make sure it monitors how it reinvests savings. Its financial plans are good and link to workforce plans.
The force assesses demand before allocating resources. It is getting better at understanding the skills of its workforce and how much its services cost. But it needs to understand what skills it will need in the future.
Detailed findings for question 1
How well does the force plan for the future?
Areas for improvement
- To enable the force to effectively manage current and future demand it the force should ensure that its ICT planning is closely aligned with its future plans and wider change programmes, so it can effectively manage current and future demand.
- The force should develop its workforce plans to identify more fully what future capabilities its workforce will need, and improve its analysis of future demand. This will ensure that the force’s medium to long-term plan is aligned effectively and efficiently with future demand.
Nottinghamshire Police needs to improve how it plans for the future. It is getting better at assessing future demand, but it needs to understand how demand is changing. It also needs to use more partnership data to help this understanding. It should improve, and have a plan for, how it uses ICT to support its needs.
The force is trying to learn more about public expectation. The new neighbourhood-based force structure will make police officers more visible and help with partnership working. But the force needs to make sure it understands the benefits of this model. It still prioritises work that will help prevent crime and anti-social behaviour.
The force still needs to get better at identifying the capabilities of its workforce and linking this to financial plans. Its HR department doesn’t have this capacity. The force is trying to attract new talent through external recruitment. It is developing the skills of its leaders, but needs to find more ways to identify and develop talent in its workforce.
The force has good financial plans, linked to its workforce plan and to the PCC’s priorities. It uses an annual departmental assessment process to identify savings. This is good. But this should link to a force-wide plan. The force is trying to build up its reserves again.
The force takes part in a number of collaborations with other emergency services and public sector organisations. It is committed to improving and providing a more effective and cost-efficient service.
Detailed findings for question 2