New Met Policing Plan for London

The Metropolitan Police Service has launched its new Policing Plan.

The plan is intended to put communities back at the heart of policing and deliver more trust, less crime and high standards.

On Monday night, the Commissioner launched 'A New Met for London' to an audience in Peckham. Peckham is the first of 32 borough opportunities, where communities can have a conversation with the force.

The plan sets out how the force will deliver better policing and radically transform the organisation.

The plan commits to keeping serious violence low and solving more rapes, domestic violence, child abuse and other cases of predatory offending. The plan also states that; "Those who fall short of our high standards will be dealt with swiftly and robustly."

The plan will focus on three key areas: community crime-fighting, culture change and fixing our foundations.

Culture change will be delivered across the Met to embed the values of policing by consent. The force has accepted Baroness Casey’s findings and has committed to responding to them: "We’ve let down the people we're supposed to protect – Black, ethnic minority and LGBT+ communities, disabled Londoners, and women – and we haven’t fixed the cultural issues that have led to that.

"We will build a strong culture focused on delivering for London, maintaining high standards and learning from others. We will regularly review how we use stop and search, overhaul how we investigate officers and staff accused of breaching standards and reform armed policing."

The Met statement says: "A New Met for London also sets out how we’re reforming our culture, systems, processes, estate and equipment to allow us to refocus our priorities and set officers, staff and volunteers up to succeed.

"For too long our people have been telling us that many parts of the Met need reform and we have been too slow to respond."

Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley, said: “I care deeply about this mission and I’ve been candid from day one about the scale of reform needed to make it a success.

“Our people want to better serve the public and have been calling for change.

“We want the public to trust in the work we’re doing, to see how we're fighting crime in their communities and how we’re keeping people safe.

“The data tells us that the majority of Londoners still trust us, more so than many other professions, but in recent years, confidence has fallen sharply and trust has been dented. We must repair that.

“We have seen serious failings, but the vast majority of our people come into work every day and do extraordinary things because they care greatly about the city and the people they protect.

“Day in and day out we see acts of kindness, bravery, dedication, and sacrifice from the 45,000 people in the Met.

“People who are driven by a desire to make the world around them a better place. We need to reform for them too.

“The progress we have already made is positive and should not be overlooked, but we know just how much more there is to do.”

Image by Fungai Tichawangana from Pixabay