PSNI Best Value review welcomed

Thursday, May 08, 2008

By Michael Bashford

The review makes some 19 recommendations, which were ratified by the board’s Resources and Improvement Committee at its meeting on April 18. The implementation of these recommendations will continue to build on the work already progressed by PSNI around protecting vulnerable people and will assist in improving the service provided by police.

The chair of the Resources & Improvement Committee, Dolores Kelly, said: “It is essential that the needs of those who are most vulnerable in our community are protected within the policing and wider criminal justice system. This Best Value Review of Protecting Vulnerable People challenged the service provided by PSNI to vulnerable people, compared the service to other police forces and engaged with local groups to identify areas for improvement.

“The recently established Public Protection Units have an important job to do in detecting, investigating and preventing crimes against vulnerable peo

ple. Many of the 19 recommendations made as a result of this review will be taken forward by the PPUs to ensure the maximum benefits and improvements to the service delivered to vulnerable people by PSNI are fully realised.”

The chair of the Best Value Review Project Steering Group, Assistant Chief Constable Drew Harris, said: “The Best Value Review underlines the importance of the establishment of Public Protection Units to protect the most vulnerable people in society. These units will, for the first time, draw together a team of specially trained police officers, managed at local level, to detect, investigate and prevent crimes in the areas of child and domestic abuse, missing people and the management of violent and sexual offenders in the community.

“There is clear evidence that there are links between domestic abuse and child abuse. People with learning difficulties are especially vulnerable to abuse. The power of an abuser over victims means crimes are not always reported to the police and evidence can be hard to obtain. PPUs will allow for early intervention and seek to identify links be

tween cases, victims and offenders. They will bring together specialist skills to complete pictures where, in the past, there have been gaps or blind spots. This brings us into line with best practice in England and Wales.”