New PCSO plan takes them OFF the street

The new year has barely begun, and Lincolnshire Police are trying to find new ways to fund the continuance of the useless Police Community Support Officers by luring councillors into the belief that a big new cunning plan will make them look better than ever!
A report to today's Executive of Lincolnshire County Council recommends embracing a "new vision of integrated neighbourhood policing" and signing up to a new three year financial deal with Lincolnshire Police.
The alternative, says the report is
1: To stop funding this chocolate teapot army, which would see the PSCO force shrink by 50 to around a third of its present strength. Amazingly, for a group which already contributes little, if anything by way of public service, the report claims this would be "a significant backward step."
2: "Develop an alternative proposal for community support." This option would throw the baby out with the bathwater by developing "alternative" community support officers positioned around the county, without the powers PCSOs currently have but needing a money-wasting new communications infrastructure, management support systems and personnel .... for just 45 people - which the report admits is insufficient to give comprehensive coverage across the county.
As we shake our heads at these money wasting proposals, as if by magic, we are the introduced to
3:"A SUPPORT NETWORK FOR LINCOLNSHIRE COMMUNITIES."
"Working in partnership with Lincolnshire Police, an opportunity has been identified to significantly improve the feelings of trust and confidence that local residents have in their public service organisations’ ability to listen and respond to their concerns. It is believed that this will also increase levels of satisfaction with councils and the police."
"The opportunity is centred upon constructing a genuinely integrated service arrangement between the County Council and Lincolnshire Police in respect of the day to day operations of PCSOs.
"The vision is for named individuals, and PCSOs in particular, to be able to report community issues and concerns into a central hub where the matter of concern will be referred to the most appropriate service provider, partnership or local strategic partnership for a response and action. The person raising the issue will be guaranteed a response within agreed service standards and the patterns and trends arising will be used in strategic planning activities.
"In addition, it is envisaged that PCSO’s will work with the County Council in a range of different settings in order to provide greater access to the PCSOs, to increase signposting to relevant council services, to engage more consistently with local councillors and support community safety activities such as trading standards, safer schools, monitoring vulnerable people and fire safety in the home.
"These visible expressions of shared operations will serve to re-assure the public that the police and county council are working together to identify and resolve the issues that matter most to local residents – a community support network."
At this point the report reminds us that - very sensibly - District Councils pulled the plug on PCSO support for 2009 / 2010.
As a result, In 2009/10 Lincolnshire County Council went solo with a contribution of £1,748,848.95.
Now, Lincolnshire Police want £1,500,000 for 2010/11 and the next two years so that their PCSOs can be paid to do a slew of jobs currently successfully being done by other people.
It's a carrot without a stick, and it appears that enough donkeys in Looncolnshire County Council are eating it up!
The waffle in this report is beyond belief.
If you don't believe us try " Opportunities for improving community well-being outcomes through integrated working" for size.
We've ranted before about the fact that no sooner than PCSOs "hit the streets" they head for the nearest supermarket where they hang up a "suggestion box" which they empty once a week - avoiding stepping out of the nick as quickly as possible.
What happened to the idea that PCSOs would get out and about on the streets. In many areas they have never been seen, and now it seems that they plan to strike the word "police" from their responsibilities entirely.
The new big idea in today's report is for "Community Surgeries" - applying using County Council facilities such as libraries, mobile libraries and children's’ centres to provide regular community 'listening posts.' "This will improve access for local residents – they will know where and when they can talk face to face with a PCSO."
Then there's "Service Signposting," where PCSOs "will pro-actively signpost residents to an agreed range of council and other services. PCSOs will be equipped with service contact details to pass on to residents where needed.
The carrot here is to aggrandise county councillors with the promise of quarterly meetings to review trends, issues and significant community issues. "It would be for the councillor and PCSO to determine whether other people could usefully participate in such discussions. This will provide another source of local shared intelligence for our organisations to act upon."
Pass the sickbag!
This is blatant empire building.
But what's this got to do with Boston, we hear you cry.
Well, district council leaders have been consulted about these proposals and have indicated their support. And, says the report, some district councils are considering whether to chip in extra cash. Apparently, such contributions would provide additional support to recruit more Special Constables which, if doubled, "will have a significant impact on neighbourhood policing in their areas."
Just as they promised the PCSOs would be.
Please note that Specials are not PCSOs - they used to be the "volunteers" who supported the police in the way that PCSOs do now - but for just a boot and shoe-leather allowance ... not £20,000 a year for starters.
So all this boils down to is another move by the Lincolnshire's Chief Con to tickle more money from the public purse to enlarge the police empire after the signal failure to railroad millions out of us with a bogus and disastrously wasteful council tax hike a couple of years ago.
More to the point, though, it is a plan that offers us less ... for more - and it completely breaks faith with the original (and largely undelivered) concept of police community support officers.
Cash-strapped Boston needs to keep its hands in its pockets for this one. And it needs its police force on the streets, not in the libraries.

Footnote: Last year, the national press reported that Lincolnshire's PCSOs issued just four fines in 2006, one in 2007 and 10 in 2008. This cost almost £10 million for 15 fines, which means each fixed penalty notice cost more than £650,000 in public money. Read more at : http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1148206/How-100-Blunkett-Bobbies-handed-15-fines-years-cost-10m.html#ixzz0bM0aBbKl

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