Superintendents' Association - Review of police targets and their impact

The Superintendents' Association of England and Wales has been asked by the Home Secretary to conduct a comprehensive review of the use of police target and their impact on outcomes. The review will examine whether targets are causing perverse incentives, reducing officer discretion, adding red tape and reflecting an outmoded business model.

The review will include all 43 territorial police forces in England and Wales. Specifically the review should consider the use of numerical targets as a means to drive and shape delivery by frontline officers and staff and the impact that this has had on behaviours. The review should also identify promising approaches to the use of data, including drawing on best practice from the private and public sectors.
Within the framework outlined above, the objectives of the review are to:
• investigate the extent of the use of targets by police and crime commissioners and chief constables in managing police performance;
• consider the impact of the use of police targets in creating perverse incentives, reducing officer discretion, and creating bureaucracy;
• consider the impact of the use of police targets in terms of behaviours;
• consider options for removing barriers to professional discretion;
• explore whether changes to the national framework might be necessary and what they might achieve, making recommendations;
• identify recommendations for the consideration of local police leaders, including identifying promising practice; and
• look at how data are used by forces in general to identify promising practice.

PCC's Response

The PCC's response to the consultation can be viewed here.