IPCC – Learning the lessons

Officers and staff are being asked to read the below report, produced by the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC).

The IPCC Learning the Lessons bulletins summarise reports of investigations into matters involving issues of command and control.

The reports are chosen because they provide learning opportunities for other police forces facing similar situations and may help them improve their policies and practices.

While the reports inevitably focus on what went wrong, they often contain useful information about how the force in question has tackled the problems identified.

Superintendent Martin Fry would like to draw your attention to the below report:

2.6 Finding girl killed by a train

One summer evening in 2007 a teenage girl who suffered from depression told friends she was going to visit her boyfriend. Later that evening she called her boyfriend’s mother and told her she was walking on a railway line and was going to throw herself in front of a train. Her father went out to look for her, but without

success, and not long after the call she was hit by a train. The impact was enough to throw her down the embankment.

Her parents reported her missing to the police the next day and the incident was logged on the STORM Command and Control System. Although her parents told the police she suffered from depression and had tried to kill herself before (including an attempt two weeks earlier), she was wrongly classified as ‘medium risk‘ rather than ‘high risk’. The Force asked … British Transport Police (BTP), to arrange for train drivers to check the railway lines in the area en route. A [BTP] Communications Officer … wrongly told the Force that trains had sensors that would alert a driver if they struck something.

A day later the status of the risk was increased to ‘high risk’.

Mobile phone data put her in the rough vicinity of her boyfriend’s house when she made her last call. That evening, a local voluntary search and rescue group were engaged to search the area under the direction of the Force. The Force also contacted [BTP] again and asked for a Police Search Adviser to liaise with them on a search of the railway lines. This was refused, however, as the duty Inspector believed that running trains through the area in daylight would be quicker and would cover the area sufficiently. The drivers of two or three trains did make a visual search but saw nothing.

The Air Support Unit (ASU) declined a request for an aerial search on the basis a ground search would be more effective. However, they did use the mobile phone data to map the area where the girl was likely to be (some 1500m up the line from the station nearest her boyfriend), but they did not pass the map to investigating officers.

Another Chief Inspector assumed command of the incident and started the process to get agreement with [BTP] to search the railway lines. The Force also appointed their own Senior Investigating Officer to the investigation and employed a Force Major Incident Team to carry out analysis. It was, however, difficult to establish what enquiries had been completed because the log system on STORM was unwieldy and difficult for officers to follow.

It was five days before the Force deployed their own officers to search over the area where the girl’s boyfriend lived (helped by the voluntary search and rescue team and an underwater dive team). At this point, under direction of the Force, BTP officers started to carry out thorough searches on the first 50-100m of railway lines running from the station nearest to the boyfriend’s house. Another five days later, this was extended to 400m.

The Force did not instruct BTP officers to carry out a less thorough search, known as a ‘hasty search,’ involving an initial walk of the railway lines over a greater area. The possibility that a glancing blow from a train might have thrown her some distance was not considered.

When a train driver reported seeing discarded material by the line the girl’s body was eventually found, 14 days after she was reported missing. She was found in the area pinpointed by the ASU map.

Key messages are for search techniques to take into account the effects of a glancing blow from a train; the importance of ‘hasty searches’; deficiencies in the STORM Command and Control system for missing person searches; the need for better liaison between forces and BTP; the need to make use of ASU expertise in searching.

Click here for a link to the full learning report.

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Is your POINTS profile up to date?

Officers are reminded to ensure their POINTS profile and PDA information is up to date.

A recent PDA usage reported generated by the Technology Department revealed that a number of PDA users are shown as being based at the incorrect location or Area.

It is important that this information is kept up to date since it reflects on each Area’s performance and can give an incorrect measurement of usage.

POINTS profiles cannot be reset by the IT department so officers are asked to check and edit the profiles themselves using the below link.

To go to the POINTS log in page click here. Please refer to the attached user guide for information on how to change POINTS details.

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Flu update – latest government advice

Following a Parliamentary announcement on Thursday (today) about the number of confirmed swine flu cases, the Government’s management of the virus has now moved from the ‘containment phase’ into the ‘treatment phase.’

Health Secretary Andy Burnham told Parliament that there are 7,447 cases of swine flu in the UK and it is now necessary for GPs to clinically diagnose people and immediately prescribe Tamiflu rather than have the virus confirmed by laboratory tests first.

As a result of these changes, the latest BTP advice to anyone who feels unwell and is displaying flu like symptoms is as follows:

·        Contact your GP

·        Your GP will prescribe Anti Viral drugs (i.e. Tamiflu) based on his/her clinical diagnosis. (five days course)

·        Inform your Line manager and the control room to report in sick

·        Stay home whilst taking these medication

·        Return to work once your medication is completed and your symptoms have gone.

·        If your condition still hasn’t improved please contact your GP for further treatment and update your line manger accordingly.

Please note:

·        BTP will consider what, if any, appropriate steps should be taken on a case by case basis.

·        However, unless you are exhibiting the symptoms yourself, you are expected to report for duty as normal.

If you have any further questions or concerns please contact your line manager in the first instance or Bob Kenwrick, Health and Safety Manager via email.

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Major public order exercise on 15 July – volunteers wanted

The Force is holding a major public order exercise at Lydd Army Camp, Kent, in July and volunteers from police staff are needed to make it as realistic as possible.

Superintendent Andy Ball said: “The exercise will involve public order teams from across the Force and officers from City of London Police, and it’s a chance for staff to expose themselves to an area of policing they don’t see every day. We need people to take part as crowd members or as bystanders for certain exercises.

“Volunteers need to get permission from their line manager first and respond to PC Lee Bolland by Tuesday 7 July. We’ve arranged transport from FHQ on the morning of Wednesday 15 July and return transport in the evening. Meals and drinks will be provided on site.”

It should be noted that police horses and dog units will be involved in the day and the exercises could involve physical activity so appropriate clothing and footwear is essential. To email PC Bolland, click here. Numbers are limited.

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LS Specials update

Please find attached the June edition of 'LS Specials Update' including news, dates and briefings for your attention.

In particular, please note the following dates:

Saturday 11th July (late turn): Op Oscillate 8
We will be looking to run an anti-drugs Op on the Croydon Tramlink at the same time as an operation tackling anti-social behaviour between Sheerness and Sittingbourne

Saturday 15th August (mid-turn): Road Traffic Operation
We will be repeating a highly successful operation that was held in February which aims to tackle road traffic offences at level crossings.  An interesting deployment in itself but also a great way to get some PDP competencies!

Sunday 30th and Monday 31st August: Notting Hill Carnival
An anti-crime operation will be hosted at key London South stations

Assistance from Specials at these events would be greatly appreciated, please notify Lara Clarke of your availability ASAP via email.

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CAT handover forms

All handovers to the Crime Action Team, based on the third floor at Holmes House, must have a fully completed handover form attached. The form must also be signed by a supervisor.

At present, officers are receiving incomplete files that are missing essential information and which are not signed by a supervisor.

Providing a file with the correct handover form and key information ensures that the CAT officers taking over the investigation can deal with it both promptly and efficiently.

Supervisors must sign the form to ensure that all the relevant information has been included.

Any files that do not have the correct handover form attached will be returned.

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Submitting CYP forms

Officers are reminded of the need to submit CYP/1 and CYP/2 forms when coming into contact with children.

CYP/1 forms should be submitted whenever an officer deals with youth or child for any reason.

CYP/2 forms should be submitted when a youth or child is taken into police protection.

Duty officers and supervisors must ensure that incidents involving children are dealt with appropriately, and ensure at the very least that a CYP/1 form has been submitted before the incident is closed.

For further information and guidance about submitting CYP/1 and CYP/2 forms, please contact PC Colin Hampton via email.

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Discounts at theme parks and attractions for all BTP staff

BTP has secured an agreement for discounts of up to 30% at the below attractions:

• The Alton Towers Resort;
• Legoland;
• Thorpe Park;
• Chessignton World of Adventures and Zoo;
• Madame Tussauds London;
• The London Dungeon;
• Warwick Castle and
• Sea Life centres and sanctuaries.

To access the offer call 0870 220 4000 and quoting Police Offers 1018.

For further details see the attached document.

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