Recommendations - Nottinghamshire Police, January 2021
A male was suffering with mental health problems and his behaviour had been reported to the police on numerous occasions over the course of a number of days.
IOPC reference
Recommendations
The IOPC recommends that Nottinghamshire Police provides guidance for their control room operatives so that they are clearly aware of the minimum set of standards which highlight the information should be included in SAFE incident logs for individuals suffering from vulnerabilities.
A review of a number of SAFE logs provided to us for a DSI investigation into the police response to an individual suffering from poor mental health, have shown that they did not contain sufficient detail around the actions taken by the control room or officers who attend the scene of the incidents. The logs also lack rationale to support decisions being made in the control room. The logs do not provide enough detail around the police response to the incidents being reported and their rationale for the actions taken. The creation of guidance for the control room detailing a minimum standard of information which should be recorded in incident SAFE logs will help the force maintain proper records of their interactions with the callers, the police response to this including detailed records of officers attendance at the scene and provide good, detailed rationale to support the actions taken. APP guidance has been produced regarding recording of information and this could assist in the creation of any guidance: https://www.app.college.police.uk/app-content/information-management/management-of-police-information/collection-and-recording/?highlight=incident%20record?s=incident+record#-incident-record
Do you accept the recommendation?
Yes
Accepted action:
An email was sent to the Ch Insps and managers/Sgts of the Force Control Room as to the recommendations and observations found during the recent reviews in terms of achieving compliance to the current Missing/MISNAR protocol and log detail. The managers are expected to monitor compliance in all performance reviews of Police Emergency Call Handler (PECH) staff and also for the information of Sgts when reviewing and updating incidents with any linked vulnerability, specifically reviews of Missing cases which they perform on a minimum 6 hourly basis in Missing, no Apparent RIsk (MISNAR) cases.
Proformas are used for specific incidents to ensure all relevant information is collected and considered which is recorded on the log. The Missing Person Proforma has been updated so PECH staff can easily identify adults from children and whether they are in a care facility which affects their vulnerability status in most cases. The AWOL Mental Health (MH) guide proforma has also been updated and is intended for use for incidents whereby patients are absent without leave from MH inpatient units with specific consideration as to the risks associated in these cases.
On the 21st December 2020 a new policy named ‘The most appropriate agency’ policy to all control room staff was issued. As we were unable to train this in a face to face environment we have produced a power-point with a voice over explaining the role of the police in terms of vulnerable and mental health cases and that of different partner agencies so that the most appropriate agency is contacted at the first opportunity to improve outcomes for those reporting incidents of this nature.
The IOPC recommends that Nottinghamshire Police provide training to ensure that control room operatives ensure that the Threat, Harm, Risk, Investigation, Vulnerability, Engagement (THRIVE) risk assessment is appropriately endorsed on all SAFE incident logs.
A review of a number of SAFE logs provided to us for a Death or Serious Injury investigation into the police response to an individual suffering from poor mental health, have shown that they did not contain sufficient detail around the actions taken by the control room or officers who attend the scene of the incidents. The logs also lack rationale to support decisions being made in the control room. The logs do not provide enough detail around the police response to the incidents being reported and their rationale for the actions taken. The creation of guidance for the control room detailing a minimum standard of information which should be recorded in incident SAFE logs will help the force maintain proper records of their interactions with the callers, the police response to this including detailed records of officers attendance at the scene and provide good, detailed rationale to support the actions taken.
Do you accept the recommendation?
Yes
Accepted action:
The THRIVE pneumonic is trained to all new Police Emergency Call Handler starters within the control room environment and is added to every incident following a Proforma. This proforma is currently under review and is being updated in consultation with our MH Specialist staff from the Street Triage team in order to improve the knowledge, understanding and recording of vulnerability within the THRIVE assessment on all incidents and to improve the detail recorded by staff so risk assessments are appropriately endorsed on all SAFE logs moving forward. The anticipated go live date for this work is February 2021.