Our Vision Our ValuesOur Ambition

Today we are guardians of a wonderful heritage. Yet I think we face the biggest challenge in our proud history.

Our country and region is changing. We are super diverse. We serve Europe's youngest city alongside an ageing population. The state is shrinking. A digital revolution is changing at breathtaking pace for those we serve and is creating new threats. Globalisation means nothing is just local and everything global is local. Whilst crime has fallen single simple acts of criminality are capable of harming many people at once. Financial pressures will still remain as we look to adapt to this changing world.

Before I talk about what we must do, I think I need to say more about what makes me tick. Many of you know me so well as the Dep and wonder what the world holds as Chief.

Four stories hold the answer:

The Foundling was sketched and painted by Francis Holl in 1873.

It is the most romantic picture of British policing. It captures the very

essence of the noble craft of policing. The combination of strength,

courage and compassion. Service and protection to all the Queen's

people, and especially those most in need. If you ever thought the

police were ever just crime fighters this picture gives you the answer.

This picture holds a fascination for me.

• It is 1996 I’m an Inspector driving home learning that the murder victim in an alleyway wasn't a sex worker but a 22-year-old studentcalled Rachel Thacker. I asked what had happened to me, that I cared more because of who the victim was. We serve fairly regardless of race, creed and social standing.

• It's 1999 and I’m standing in a crime-ridden part of East Manchester talking to Elaine, a resident, who tells me "We aren't bad people we just live in a bad area. You lot ought to remember this." Everyone deserves and gets our help.

• In 2006 I’m in Moss side in Manchester, talking to Erinma Bell about buying my daughter a bike for Christmas. She tells me she daren't buy her sons a mountain bike because gang members in Moss Side rode round on them and she didn't want the boys shot. This was a place I was responsible for policing and where so many young black men had died. We can never be complacent about making people safer. Preventing crime is why we are here and it really can be a matter of life and death.

• It's 2010 and Project Champion where this force installed a covert CCTV scheme in Birmingham to deal with terrorism and forgot basic policing principles. We have to earn and re-earn the trust and respect of the publicevery day.

I share these stories because I believe policingis one of those jobs where we make a huge difference. I will continue to push our ambitionwhilst never forgetting results delivered withoutdemonstrating core values in the way we work is never success.

I want my time as your leader to be one wherewe are outstanding at preventing crime and protecting people through modern, responsive,agile services. I want us to be one of the mostadvanced police organisations in the worldwhilst displaying the most traditional Peelian values in our relationship with the public.

This requires a transformation in West MidlandsPolice where we look a little less like the imagesin Holl’s picture but more strongly resemble the values it represents.

In so many ways WMP2020 is going to buildthese changes. Today marks the start of the implementation of that programme and it willbegin the creation of a more modern digitally enabled force with exciting technology and new models of policing.

The current programme is however not enoughand indeed the feedback from staff over the last few weeks convinces me of this.

I intend to build upon it in four ways:

• A new vision, operating principles and values

• A new deal for our people

• A new relationship with the public

• A new approach to prevention

Through the WMP2020 programme we set a series of operating principlesor pillars for policing. Setting a style for our policing is vital as it helps usdeliver the vision. I am retaining these pillars as the force operating principles so we are clear the way our services should be designed andoperate but with an addition: Our people.

All the technology in the world won't deliver great policing - great peopledo. In the last few years our challenges has been the money, today it isyou. Our people.

We prevent crimethrough early intervention andpartnership.

We listen to, involve and empower the public to create safer communities.

We respond effectivelyand at pace to crimesand incidents in ourcommunities.

We trust our people toact with integrity andmake good decisions.We apply an evidence-based approach to problems and learn from our actions.Information drives our actions.

Each theme connects with our people, communities and partners to ensure we can deliver a service that is smaller, faster and smarter.

Vision statements are often traded lightly. I believe they provide an essential and purposeful focus.

We have served our communities and protected them from harm forthe last five years but we need to signal a new purpose.

That will be:

A new vision not for new branding but for a new purpose.This statement enshrines an ambition that is demanding in preventingcrime and social harm, protecting people, and within a service that always knows it is about friendship and help to those in the most need. Something easy for everyone to ensure they understand and do everyday and one to measure ourselves against.

Our Vision

WMP2020 Operating PrinciplesOperating Principles

"Preventing crime, protecting the public and helping those in need"

• The West Midlands operating model changes to place staff at the centre of our operating approach being clear “We trust our people to act with integrity and make good decisions”

• We are going to introduce the THRIVE + decision making model. If you follow this it willhelp you make better decisions and when things do go wrong you get our backing.

• I want people to start challenging the dumb things we make you do that demoralise you, offer nothing to prevent crime or protect people and waste the time we no longer have and at worst alienate the public. I have startedthat conversation on taking in this office, but itis going to continue. We will put in place waysyou can challenge these issues and expectations and support for leaders to listen and act so problems get fixed at the right level. It will involve all leaders as in many waysmost of the problems should, and indeed I expect them, to be fixed well before they reach me.

• We will have less bureaucratic policies replacing them with guidance based on evidence, that encourage people to take sensible risks and that assume we trust our

staff. We will start with the areas where peopleare most fearful of making the wrong call: public protection.

• We do not treat everyone fairly. We must end the unnecessary differences in treatment between police officers and police staff. Diversity really matters and I am committed toensure equality of opportunity and fair treatment of everyone. Within six months every job or promotion interview will be done by someone trained in unconscious biasand across every protected characteristic in temporary promotions and role selection. We will enhance our positive action work.

• We are investigating too many people for conduct matters, we are disproportionate and it takes too long. The resolution process fails to be quick or achieve satisfaction. This creates fear, risk aversion and wastes time. There must now be change so we investigate only where there is no other sensible or ethicalalternative and it's quick and fair. We find ways of fixing things when they go wrong. Changes will be made within three months.

• Individual appraisals have failed. We will moveto team appraisals starting with the CommandTeam and response policing.

Teams should be agreeing what they are trying to achieve and holding themselves to account by direct open feedback.

• That does not mean you do not deserve interest and investment in you. We will ensure everyone in this organisation gets a chance to get feedback and have a discussion on their aspirations. This year that conversation happens with their boss.

• Tenure was too blunt but some roles in the force should have minimum and maximum times in role so in an era of reducingpromotion opportunities people get a fair chance at new opportunities and there is morestability in some roles. We will begin changes within three months.

• You will serve for longer. It means you will be older and so will those you love. We will develop and invest in a new strategy for employee wellness this year.

• We will be supplying body cams, reviewing the deployment of Taser and firearms and issuing a new baton to ensure you are safe at work this year.

This deal will be set out in full in the next three months but it will include:

Austerity has been hard. We have reduced in budget by 23 per cent and in people by 3000. We have got our heads down and delivered. You shouldbe proud of what we have all achieved. Crime has fallen, we are better atprotecting people and fighting organised crime. Terrorism plots have beenprevented and the public are more trusting of us. But there is a price that's been paid.

The last five years has left many feeling undervalued and over-criticised.Many people feel over tasked and yet lacking in direction. Too few feelthe good work gets noticed and the poor performer gets dealt with. Not enough interest is taken of people's ideas and aspirations. We are somehow making people feel frightened of doing what they know to be right. We do not treat everyone fairly. We don't act and operate as if we trust our people.

This is damaging to our staff, wastes time and effort and robs the public ofprotection. In some ways national events and others bodies play their partin this, but how we lead and operate the force is critical. This has beenheard by me clearly through the ask the boss feedback.

I believe it is time for a new deal for the staff of West Midlands Police.

It is first and foremost about trusting the professional staff in our greatforce. It’s about being a fair place for everyone, being interested in keepingyou safe and healthy. A place where what you think counts.

I will also set out new demanding leadership expectations as we can and must be better leaders to our staff in the tough times ahead.

A New Deal for Staff

But this deal has a hard edge too:• We cannot tolerate those who persistently generate complaints through poor conduct or dishonesty. Who do not turn up regularly to work with out a good reason or who lack the motivation for their roles. We cannot accept those who abuse trust invested in them.

• You keep telling us that in staff surveys. So we will begin a direct focus now on those people who are not meeting the standards West Midlands Police expects. We will systematically challenge this openly, fairly and directly. I want people to get on board and we will help them do this but if not we will move decisively to. We cannot carry passengers.

• We begin in the next few weeks an exercise to look at addressing those staff with the most concerning sickness absence.

• We are not backing away from efficiency. As we modernise roles will not be needed and the costs of activity will be challenged. We will modernise the work force to reflect a new digital Information Age.People will still leave us and we will do this in a dignified way. The lessons of the last five years will not be lost.

I am offering a new deal, yes because I think people doing such demanding and great work should be happier, but the real drive is because it will make us a stronger and a more effective force.

Good active leadership is critical. There is, of course, great leadership already in this force and we are very strong at our grip and control of the operations and incidents we face.

I would pitch our can do approach against anyone. Sometimes that's theproblem. We are still too command and control when we don't need to be.It's just as important to listen, nurture, empower and challenge as it is to direct. I want to invest in leaders so they feel more confident and supported to do this.

To set out clear expectations that you deliver to hold your position. I alsointend to look at ways for staff to have their voices heard on how effectivethey think their leaders are, because those views matter.

You prevent problems.• You act to prevent crime and stop peoplebeing harmed.

• You prevent problems by working withothers.

• You are creative and think of new approaches to problems.

You offer friendship.• You care about the people we serve. • You are honest and you earn people’strust.

• You show friendship by helping the public, partners and colleagues – particularly those who may not realise they need your help.

• You are courteous.

Our Values

Our Values

West Midlands Police is made up of people like you

You are ambitious.• You show consistently strong performance socolleagues know they can rely on you.

• You inspire others with your thirst for excellence.• You seek to work in diverse teams.• You challenge and address poor service.

At the core of a new deal and our leadership expectations must be new values.

Our values live on the wall in a picture frame. It's time to refresh them so they enact what we believe about policing. They must be grounded in Peel’sprinciples and reflect our code of ethics but fit for a modern age. They have to become something we live by: from individual acts, reward and recognition, promotion through to how we design future services.

Whilst all are important here is one value that is important, perhaps easyto ridicule and hard to explain.

Peel's fifth principle of policing is perhaps the least quoted and most important. The police secure public favour by "a ready offering of individual service and friendship to all members of society without regard to their race or social standing". Friendship and the help tothose in need is at the heart of our tradition, the core of my vision andshould be an anchor value. It’s not a soft sentiment about being nice.

Let me explain.

Public services fail and scandals happen when we fail to act as friendsto those in need, even when they do not know or cannot ask for ourhelp. It's why I could not entertain us producing a list of calls or crimeswe wouldn't attend when further cuts threatened, because it meant wewere leaving people to fend for themselves. It's why I look at cases likeDaniel Pelka and the issue of CSE and recognise we failed to offer thevery friendship people needed at a moment of crisis. This value is aboutlooking out for people and helping them when they need our assistance.It is about respecting them as people and often looking beyond theiroutward behaviour and trying to connect with them. It is allowing you tostep outside what might seem your remit if it’s the right thing to do.

Friendship is not just about the public it's also across the force. We talkabout working as one team but too often that means my team. We canand we must be more supportive to one another and our partners.

5. The police seek and preserve public favor, not by catering to publicopinion, but by constantly demonstrating absolutely impartial serviceto the law, in complete independence of policy, and without regard tothe justice or injustice of the substance of individual laws; by ready offering of individual service and friendship to all members of societywithout regard to their race or social standing, by ready exercise ofcourtesy and friendly good humor; and by ready offering of individualsacrifice in protecting and preserving life.

These are the values I feel fit our time, but they have to be owned by us all.

Over the next two weeks you will get a chance to have your say about them, to challenge them and offer your own views of them.

Then we will adopt them so we can do so wholeheartedly knowing they belong to us all.

You are courageous and fair.• You use our power to makepeople safer.

• You physically and morallystand up for the right things.

• You are intolerant of unjust, unreasonable and discriminatory behaviour to the public, partners and colleagues.

• You act within the law.

• You make tough decisions.

• You are calm and patient withpeople.

You listen and learn.• You accept and admit when weare wrong.

• You learn lessons . • You let the public see how wework because you welcometransparency.

• You can always be better.

Have your say.

Our relationship with the publicOur friendship and ready offering of help to those in need is the bedrock of our relationship with the public. In the last few months people must havebeen worried or confused about what future cuts meant to policing. Whilst we do not face those huge cuts we do need to set out a more modern relationship with the public. I believe our offer is a good one:

• Our ambition is for a service that is even better at preventing crime and protecting them. We do not face the big cuts we feared so we must beever more ambitious on what we can achieve.

• When you are in need you get our friendship, protection and help. That's our job.

• When we are wrong we will admit this. Sometimes the public, politiciansor media won't agree with us and I promise we will explain and account for ourselves. When we believe we are right we won't shy away from doing the right thing or backing our people.

• I believe in Neighbourhood Policing. Every area will have a named officerand dedicated team. We will work hard to protect their time to concentrate on your community.

• We will try to deal with routine incidents in one call or visit.

But to do this we need the public more than ever to remember the policeare the public and the public are the police. So I say to the public:

• We do not have the same number of people so we have to change the way we do things. We will involve the public in how we change the way we work. Be open to new ways of working with us.

• We are the service of last resort but too often we are people's first point of call. Think whether there is more you or another service can do beforeyou ask us to do it.

• We want more of you to play an active part in your area, not to do our job, but because when people care for a place it is much safer. Expect us to support more of you to help us make safe communities and join usas volunteers.

• We want to keep a relationship with you so we can keep you informed and safe and not just when you need us. Increasingly that means a digital relationship so we will expand ways we can keep more of you up to date in modern ways.

The biggest feature of our new relationship is the same as that with our staff. Trust.

As a force we are becoming older and despite our attempts we will not inmy time as Chief reflect the diverse region we serve. People trust us butnot everyone thinks we are trustworthy or fair. We have seen the recentconsequences of the gap between the police and the public in theUnited States on the issue of race. It is to a lesser degree here and existsamongst our own BME communities, young people and the vulnerable.We are also about to digitalise more services and change how we workthis could make us feel more remote. We need to grow armed policing tomeet the threats of international terrorism. All of these things could create a trust gap between the police and the public.

I will not let a gap develop.

I will begin a real and strategic process of collaborative reform with thepublic now to ensure we comprehensively understand gaps in trust, particularly with minority communities, the poor and the vulnerable andwork with them to bridge this. We will employ a strong evidence baseand research approach to getting this right and it will be a new part of 2020.

DeliveryPeel was very clear that the most fundamentaltest of police efficiency was the absence ofcrime and disorder. We exist to stop badthings happening. I am committed to being aforce that is outstanding at preventing crime,disorder and harm to people and communities.

We have been a very successful force at this.We have much lower levels of crime and of-fending than any other major city area in thiscountry. Be proud of that. But today the worldis more complex.

We face online attacks to create fraud, sexualexploitation and extremism. We know a fewpeople and families create huge demand butwe struggle to identify them in an ocean of information. Preventing violence needs interventions beyond those policing can offer alone.

We have to intervene upstream at long termrisk and downstream at very present harm. We have to begin a step change to a more comprehensive approach.

In the short term:

• It is vital the work to develop the evidence base of "what works" in preventing crime is at the core of our professional approach. We can and must extend this skill and thinking to all leaders as a core skill instead of the preserve of the enthusiast.

• The excellent partnership work on organised crime and gangs in Birmingham East, Wolverhampton and Coventry must now be rapidly expanded so we have a strong shared prevention approach to tackling serious criminals.

• The new Neighbourhood Policing Model continues the values of the past but with a focused and determined approach to prevent crime, disorder and demand.

• Our new Intervention and Prevention Board and unit will take all the work we are doing on violence, children and young people and offending and rapidly develop a mature range of interventions.

• We are investing in modern predictive analytics to anticipate policing challenges.

• The excellence we aspire to in reducing violence, domestic abuse and child protection must have a specific importance.

Peel was clear the police cannot exist or perform their

duties without public approval. This is never secure and

must always be earned. I think this is very much at risk

if we are complacent.

Trust

Our AmbitionOur policing ambition for the next two years

Together we shall:• Keep crime low.

• Inspire greater trust, especially from the young, the vulnerable and our diverse communities.

• Increase citizen participation in creating safer communities.

• Trust and care for our colleagues.

• Protect the public from terrorism and serious and organised crime.

• Protect the most vulnerable from abuse.

• Prevent violence.

• Prevent dependency on public services by effective policingof repeat victims and callers, neighbourhoods, mental illnessand persistent offenders.

• Offer more effective services by sharing problems and inteingrating with other agencies.

• Offer modern digital services that meet the needs of communities, staff and partners.

• Develop our ability to create insight and foresight from our information.

• Improve our efficiency to invest more resources in preventing crime.

We must push further than this. Real prevention means a joined up system and network of services that see challenges as acollective endeavour. To do this we must create a depth of partnership unseen in this region, something devolution can now help usachieve; a whole system approach to complexproblems. This requires us to now reach out toour partners to reshape how services work. I believe we must:

Join up on Information and Insight:Information can help us identify those peopleand places that generate huge demand andharm to communities. We are going to invest ina long term step change in analytics. We mustensure partners join us on a digital revolutionto become the region with the most insightand foresight of the area it serves.

Join up on outcomes: We work well together but still do not haveshared outcomes across the West Midlands or each area to determine how prevention of social harm and safety are gauged. We must unify our approach.

Join up on people:The work on Safeguarding, IOM, Turning Pointand Troubled Families has made a start wehave an incredible opportunity through thenew West Midlands Combined Authority tocreate a genuinely shared approach to earlyand effective intervention opportunities.

This year the Strategic Assessment is builtaround one individual and their family. To showthe lifecycle of interventions needed to preventtheir chaotic criminal behaviour.

Join up in services.We are keeping very senior officers in everylocal authority area with new neighbourhoodpolicing units. Let's join up resources and workin a far more integrated way in local placesbreaking the boundaries between teams, justas we are starting to do in Solihull.

Join up in approach and culture.Everything we do together must now be designed with a "prevention in all we do"ethos. This is the heart of how public servicesshould and must be reformed if they are not tocollapse under austerity. I believe a closerunion within our 2020 structure and devolutionis possible. Today I have written to every Localauthority Chief Executive in the force openingnegotiations now, under ACC Larmour’s oversight and through their LPU Commanderto begin “integrated place based working” as we move to the new Neighbourhood Policing Units.

The conversation on integration has begun.

Gearing to prevention and buying time to beproactive has an impact on our organisation.Having laid out a new local Neighbourhoodand Offender Management Model and

prevention ethos, it is my intention to seek toensure it is sustainable. That does not meanstaff numbers are fixed, as joint workingshould enable efficiency, but it does meanthose areas of reactive policing, like responseand investigations, are areas where we need to become more productive. Support serviceswill also need to be leaner and become morepreventative, productive and less reactive.

This isn't because reacting, responding and investigating are less valuable. Responding atpace is critical to nipping problems in the budand the mission support pilot in Birmingham iscentral to this.

It is however an area where we can increaseproductivity by using modern technology andwe are doing just that now with mobility, digitalinterviewing and more innovation will follow. It will also be an area where some services arebetter delivered by national or regional collaborations and we will be active in thiswork. The attacks in Paris also means a different blend of specialist services are necessary. Armed capability needs to growand so will digital and cyber investigations.How response, investigation, public protection,forensics and operations will look will changeto become leaner, more digitally equipped and delivered more collaboratively.

Do not think prevention is the soft end of policing. We must have a steely determination to ensure we are clear what things work, be accountable to make sure we do them and that we measure our impact. I will set a two year ambition plan for the force to support the delivery of the police and crime plan. This plan will set clear ambitions, not targets, on the outcomes we want to achieve and a mature performance framework that looks at the right ways of judging performance. The Deputy Chief Constable will lead this work.

"Preventing crime, protecting people and helping those in need"

• That puts our people at the centre of our approach.

• Trusting them, leading them well and caring for them, but setting high standards based on

traditional policing values.

• That transforms our relationship with people by offeringthe timeless hand of friendship to those in need and

cherishing and renewing their trust in us.

• Invites citizens to play an active part in caring for theircommunities and volunteering.

• That offers 21st century modern services.

• A force committed to prevention in all it does andone that integrates fully with the whole public service tocreate a whole system approach to our problems.

• That is ever more productive, effective and specialised inhow it meets the full range of policing challenges.

A refreshed West Midlands 2020 programme, with the adaptations I have mentioned, offers the vehicle toachieve this. I believe we are positioned to be the

benchmark for what a 21st century police force should be.

Our opportunities, our assets and relationships, and at the heart of it all our people, convince me

that this is the case.

Today we start this work.

Preventing crime, protecting the public

and helping those in need