police and crime commissioner simon hayes Welcome to this special edition of Frontline, which focuses on the police estate, our buildings and properties. It was for two main reasons I took the decision, early in 2013, to review the way buildings and property were managed across Hampshire Constabulary. First because, for any organisation to operate effectively – and the police service is no exception here – I believe it’s important to have a modern, efficient and appropriate working environment, to enable people to provide an excellent and effective service, of which we can all be proud. Second, and quite simply, it’s a waste to spend money on old, not fit for purpose, expensive-to-maintain buildings when, in my view, that money should be spent on delivering policing. The result of that review is the Estate Change Programme you see explained here. We now have a professional, experienced and committed Estate team, delivering the fabric to Hampshire Constabulary that will sustain the organisation through the next 20 years. This will be achieved at no additional cost to the taxpayer, with money previously being spent on old, expensive buildings now being freed up to spend on policing, not buildings. The programme will also deliver modern, state-of-the-art custody facilities, together with an ICT capability that is fit to support modern policing. I’m pleased, too, that gym facilities, all be they basic, will be installed in some sites. The development of partnership working and sharing of buildings with Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service and local authorities sees us as the first police force in the country to share an HQ with our fire service. Not only is this innovative, but I believe it will allow for more effective collaboration in the future. I appreciate that, as this project takes shape and is completed over the next couple of years, there will be upheaval and inconvenience in some locations. I hope, however, you will see the benefits in the long term both to yourselves, working in the organisation, and the delivery of policing to the public of Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, whom we all serve. I’d welcome your views on the Estate Change Programme and what it is we are developing here. Comments can be emailed to estate.development@hampshire.pnn.police.uk Finally, my sincere and appreciative thanks to all police, staff and members of the Estate Change Programme for their commitment to delivering this innovative strategy. The scale of change is significant, it is for the future of policing across our communities; it is to enable the delivery of a better service at a time when policing is under great pressure across our nation. It will sustain our capability into the future.
The people, stories and events that should be on your radar this month PIC and choose
gurney journey
As he looks to procure land for the new Police Investigation Centre in the east of the county, Police and Crime Commissioner Simon Hayes has apologised to officers and staff based in Fratton for the “substandard” premises where they work. The estates team is in the process of making Fratton station a more comfortable working environment until a new location can be found.
The money that many of you contribute to the Gurney Fund for police children, many of whom who have lost a parent, has helped to treat 30 youngsters to a week’s adventure holiday, including a trip to Legoland. The fund provides financial support for the care and education of beneficiaries, who on this year’s trip were joined by federation chair John Apter and Assistant Chief Officer Nicole Cornelius. To learn more visit www.gurneyfund.org
justice for majella
2020 vision
The judge in the trial and sentencing of Daniel McBride has praised the “first-class investigation from start to finish” by the team of police officers and staff that led to justice for Majella Lynch. Sentencing McBride to life with a minimum 29-year tariff, Mr Justice Akenhead acknowledged the complex and challenging police work behind the investigation into a crime he described as “brutal and merciless”.
What will the force look like in 2020? That’s the question being posed as we start a new programme, called HC2020, to ensure we provide the best policing service we can in years to come. A reference group is being set up to help us decide how we can be radical in understanding and controlling our demand and removing unnecessary bureaucracy. Search “HC2020” on the intranet.
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Providing the right number of buildings in the right places to cut the cost of policing year on year. Leading the way nationally by sharing a police and fire headquarters. These are just some of the achievements currently being delivered as part of the Police and Crime Commissioner’s Estate Strategy, which was launched in 2013.
BUILDING THE
FUTURE how targeted investment is transforming the policing landscape in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight
Out of this strategy was born the Estate Change Programme which, now at the midway point, is gaining momentum and is on track for completion by 2017. The plans are part of the commissioner’s commitment to keep policing at the heart of local communities by delivering a range of new facilities for policing, refurbishing older buildings and sharing facilities with key public sector partnerships. Since 2013, the Estate team has been busy working with district, unitary and county councils to identify opportunities to share buildings that allow officers and staff to operate from fit-for-purpose facilities in convenient locations within local communities at no additional cost to the public. The force also continues to build on the successful strategic partnership it shares with Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service. By investing in our buildings now we are reducing the long-term cost of maintenance. Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary has taken note of the strategy, citing Hampshire as a force with “an ambitious plan to change the way it uses its buildings and plans to save money while investing in improving its estate from the proceeds of selling surplus land and buildings”. Central to the successful move from an owned to a shared estate is the digitalisation of policing and the force’s plans to improve contact with the public. We have already demonstrated that we are a leading force nationally in our use of body-worn video (turn to page 12), and we are investing further in technology that allows officers to deal with crime more effectively. Our contact management programme, Connect My Police, which is being delivered with Thames Valley Police, will allow members of the public to contact the police via phone, online, SMS, web chat and social media. This special edition of Frontline highlights some of the key developments in the force’s fouryear building programme. The result will be an estate that supports the future but remains at the heart of our communities. 03
southampton central
The new state-of-the-art ÂŁ30million Southampton Central police station opened its doors to the public in March 2011. By 2014, it was time for the building to undergo some refurbishment, in line with the Estate Strategy, and to reconfigure the 36-cell site to create the first of the three new Police Investigation Centres (see pages 8-9). Improved wayfinding, standardising furniture and creating more space for extra workstations were just some of the changes made initially. Each floor has been repainted in a bright single block of colour, and this corporate design model will be replicated in new developments across the estate including Mottisfont Court. Officers and staff have also seen their working environment improve thanks to the introduction of break-out rooms, new kitchenettes, teleconferencing facilities, personal lockers and the rolling out of Smarter Working (see page 12).
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portswood police station
Portswood police station was the first in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight to be refurbished as part of the Police and Crime Commissioner’s Estate Strategy. The station was originally earmarked for closure. But after engagement with the local community, including a public meeting, and no suitable alternative for relocation being found in the heart of the community, a decision was made to renovate the building. It was officially reopened in April 2015. Portswood station boasts a new gym, named after PC Richard Phillips-Schofield, who died from injuries sustained in a cycling accident at a Portsmouth velodrome in 2014. In March the gym was officially opened in a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by Rich’s family. Portswood gym is the first of 11 new gyms planned across the force, with others including Mottisfont Court and Andover police station. 05
strategic HQ, Eastleigh The contractors remain on target to complete in October 2015, when constabulary staff relocating to this site will move in. The main building will be remodelled and designed to create a wholly shared headquarters with both fire and police organisations enjoying shared communal facilities: main entrance, meeting rooms, break-out spaces, restaurant and cafĂŠ areas and resource rooms. The building will be opened out to create flexible working areas and provide a variety of spaces for working and meeting. A base palette of neutral colours has been selected for floor, wall, desking, tables and storage. Set against this are stronger accent colours on feature walls, floors and upholstery furnishings to give the interiors an identity and aid wayfinding. Feature colours in carpets and on walls will signpost the new hub areas located off corridors. The central restaurant and cafĂŠ provide a welcoming environment that encourage fire and police staff to share space and facilitate collaboration between their organisations.
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OUR NEW headquarters BUILDINGS Over the past few years, Hampshire Constabulary and Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service have successfully colocated police officers and staff into shared facilities within HFRS buildings, including the neighbourhood police offices at Redbridge, Alresford and Stockbridge fire stations.
Building on this successful police-fire partnership, this autumn the two organisations will co-locate their strategic headquarters at HFRS’s Leigh Road base in Eastleigh – a move which is leading the way nationally. Around 100 senior police officers and support staff will work out of the new building. The force’s operational headquarters will remain in Winchester, based at Mottisfont Court at the top of the high street. The move is expected to save both organisations around £600,000 a year by allowing them to share overheads. The current police HQ, at West Hill, Winchester, has been sold and is set for redevelopment into housing in early 2016.
operational HQ, WINCHESTER Contractors were appointed to the Mottisfont Court project in February and major refurbishment work is now underway to bring it up to standard in line with our new approach to interior design and space utilisation that enables Smarter Working. The project remains on track for completion by October 2015, with staff moving in from then through to December. The building is being remodelled to create a more flexible working environment. Open-plan offices will maximise the use of space, and there will be a number of meeting rooms and break-out spaces throughout the building. Each floor in the building has been assigned an accent colour, which will be seen on the pillars with contrasting colours coming from soft furnishings. Feature colours on pillars will signpost the floors which will be further emphasised with graphics and signage. The Beeston Room is being relocated from North Walls police station to Mottisfont Court and will be on the first floor. 07
police investigation centres Replacing ageing custody cells with modern Police Investigation Centres to meet future policing needs was one of the commitments made by PCC Hayes when he launched his Estate Strategy. Three new centres, in Southampton, Basingstoke and Portsmouth, will provide short-term custodial facilities to support quicker processing and handling of detainees, allowing frontline police officers to return to duty quicker.
SOUTHAMPTON PIC Work to accommodate the first phase of omnicompetent investigation teams has been completed and has gone live, allowing us to test the effectiveness of this solution and to ensure that the new PICs are designed to support new ways of working across the force. Design work has been completed and costs are currently being obtained for works in the undercroft to create additional locker and storage space to free up further workspace within the main building. This gives the potential to bring in up to a further 200 staff working flexibly and will include IT and Call Management teams, significantly improving the building’s overall efficiency.
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Basingstoke PIC All legal work for the new PIC in the north of the county is now complete and a 250-year lease has been signed with Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council. The planning process is ongoing and we are expecting to get approval to some minor outstanding issues from the planning authority in the next month or so. This will enable main works to start on site in September this year, with a target construction completion date at the end of 2016 and fit out and furniture installation early 2017.
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Chief’s Column
There will undoubtedly be a sense of nostalgia for many people surrounding the closure of some of our buildings as part of the Estate Change Programme, but I hope our officers and staff – and the wider public – can see the size of the opportunity presented to us. The strategic reform of our estate will enable us to ensure that the right people are in the right places, available at the right time to anticipate and meet demand. What I have learned throughout this process of modernisation is actually how little that bricks and mortar have to do with policing. Instead, empowering our officers and staff to be more mobile in their work is one of our main goals. The public expect to see police officers and police community support officers patrolling the streets. This is where mobile technology comes in, and I’m pleased to say we’re a force leading in the digital field with our investment in areas such as bodyworn video (see page 12), digital case files and the next generation of mobile data technology. Owning the right estate is just one part of keeping our position as one of the most innovative forces in the country. Having fewer buildings, with lower cost maintenance, means the money we don’t spend in this area can be invested in others, including ICT and our communications infrastructure, if we are to be a truly 21st-century organisation. We will continue to embed partnership working, find new ways for the public to contact us and ensure we have the right technology in place to deliver to those who need our services. Ultimately I want us to create a work environment of which we can be proud. We may not get this opportunity again, and in the current climate of financial restraint we must spend wisely to invest in our future while at the same time reducing our ongoing costs. 10
moving from an owned to a shared estate Tadley
Yateley
Hook Basingstoke
Farnborough Aldershot
Andover Alton
Winchester Operational HQ
Petersfield
Eastleigh Romsey Strategic HQ
Eastleigh Strategic HQ Bishops Waltham
Southampton
Portswood Hedge End
Lyndhurst
Waterlooville Park Gate Netley Training HQ Portsmouth Hamble Marine Unit
Lymington
Newport
KEY Police Investigation Centre (PIC)
NPT in partnership building
Custody
TPT in police building
NPT in police building
TPT in partnership building
response and neighbourhoods teams Completed projects A number of Prevention and Neighbourhoods teams and Response and Patrol teams are now based at Parklands, situated in the heart of the community and across the road from Basingstoke police station. This move enabled investigators serving the north of the county to move into the interim PIC at Basingstoke station until the new PIC is completed. Feedback from staff based at Parklands is that the environment is better because of the modern, fit-for-purpose offices, and the move has enabled better partnership working. All officers and staff now each have a locker as part of the force’s move towards Smarter Working. All police vehicles have designated parking. Longmoor Neighbourhood Police Office opened at the Eco-Station, Bordon, in May 2015, as the base for the Prevention and Neighbourhoods teams. The Eco-station ensures that officers and staff stay within the heart of the community they serve and when the town is regenerated the building will be a in a central position in the wider community. Ventnor Neighbourhood Police Office, at the Enterprise Centre, which is run by Ventnor Town Council, went live on August 4. The Estate team secured this office after holding a public engagement meeting and
this location was suggested by those in attendance. The Shanklin team will also occupy this accommodation to facilitate greater management efficiencies.
To be delivered imminently The Neighbourhood Policing Team on Hayling Island will move into Hayling Island library in the autumn. Work to enable the local senior police team to occupy space within Portsmouth Civic Offices will be completed this summer, albeit with a temporary IT connection.
To be delivered by the end of 2015 Fleet Neighbourhood Police Office to open within Hart District Council premises. Neighbourhood police offices in Gosport, Fareham and Havant, and Petersfield are currently being developed with local authority partners. With recent changes in the senior police team and the appointment of a new superintendent for the Isle of Wight, the Estate Strategy elements that affect
the Island are being reviewed to ensure that all current plans for accommodation fit with the overarching plan that is being developed for the county. Sites at Sandown and Cowes have been identified, with good relationships being maintained with local partners ready for development of these opportunities when the strategy is complete.
Developments and changes in approach Thanks to close working relationships with Portsmouth City Council, opportunities have arisen to co-locate the citywide response team with the Buckland neighbourhoods team at the civic offices. This offers a more efficient solution and negates the need for a separate Buckland office for the neighbourhoods team. District Commander Supt Will Schofield is already based at the civic offices and will be joined by colleagues soon. The force had planned to introduce a neighbourhoods team into Portsmouth City Council offices in Paulsgrove. This move didn’t work out, but due to the close relationship the force shares with the council we are exploring another opportunity in Cosham. 11
Smarter Working is being delivered through flexible use of space, such as shared workspace, 1-2-1 rooms, touchdown space, welfare areas, break-out spaces, meeting rooms and collaboration spaces.
SMARTER stands for
Smarter Working is all about using our space in a smarter way. This will benefit our members of staff by creating a better working environment, enable different kinds of spaces to be used to support this way of working and it will save money.
S pecific to your business M anaged to deliver A ctivity focused – agile and adaptive working R esource based – efficient and effective T ransforming our culture – team/together E nabling and empowering staff R esponding to change – making it work
Digital Collaboration Roll-out of personal-issue BWV cameras gathers pace Hampshire Constabulary is continuing the move towards having all evidence-gathering frontline officers supplied with their own personal-issue body-worn video (BWV) camera. The Digital Policing Board, which also covers Thames Valley Police (TVP), has approved the roll-out of an additional 835 cameras for Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, which will take the number of personal-issue officers within force to 1,716. The total number of cameras in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight will then stand at 2,082. At the current time, personal-issue cameras are being rolled out to Hampshire’s Response and Patrol teams and Prevention and Neighbourhoods teams. Once this has been completed, the personal-issue roll-out will be extended to the Joint Operations Unit, including those in the Roads Policing Unit, dog handlers, the Marine Unit and the Force Support Unit who have access to a stand-alone BWV computer and attached storage facilities. It is anticipated that these cameras will be in the hands of officers by the end of November 2015. At this time, there is no plan in Hampshire to extend the roll-out to stations that do not currently have BWV facilities. This situation is likely to change at the point when the force moves to an integrated system for storing and sharing BWV footage. Personal-issue officers will receive 12
RS2-X2 cameras, which are smaller and more robust than current models, with both an internal battery and memory card. The extended personal-issue rollout will also create a surplus of existing RS3 cameras. These are currently being redistributed across the force for use by neighbourhood officers, Special constables and any other staff member or unit that requires their use. In Thames Valley, there are currently 380 BWV pool cameras in use across a
total of 36 locations. Inspector Steve Goodier said: “This latest deployment maintains Hampshire’s position as a leader in the field of bodyworn video. In the coming months, the aim is for officers to be able to view BWV footage across our network as we move towards sharing video across the wider criminal justice system.” For more information on the roll-out in Hampshire, search BWV on the intranet.
By the end of November 2015, Hampshire Constabulary will have rolled out 2,082 BWV cameras as follows:
881
Response and Patrol 595
Prevention and Neighbourhoods 140
Roads Policing Unit 71
JOU/Other
29
Dog Unit
366
Pool Cameras
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
900
1000