Public invited to ask questions ahead of Police Commissioner’s scrutiny meeting

Merseyside’s Police Commissioner is inviting local people to send in their questions ahead of her first Scrutiny Meeting.

Emily Spurrell is holding her first public scrutiny session of Merseyside Police on Tuesday September 7^th, 2021, and she is asking the public to submit questions about policing which she can put to Merseyside Police’s Chief Constable Serena Kennedy and her Chief Officer team.

The meeting, which will be held at the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority chamber in Mann Island, will be live-streamed to allow members of the public to watch and hear the responses to their questions.

The focus for this meeting will be Merseyside Police’s ‘people’ or workforce – so the Commissioner is specifically inviting questions about issues such as recruitment, welfare and sickness levels, the diversity of Merseyside Police, and how officers are allocated across the region. This will include looking at how the new officers recruited as part of the national uplift programme are being deployed.

As the public’s representative on policing and community safety, Emily has a statutory duty to hold the Chief Constable to account for delivering an effective and efficient police service. These meetings enable her to flag any areas of concern and work with the Chief Constable to find improvements and alternative ways of tackling issues. The Commissioner will live-stream her Scrutiny Meeting every quarter.

Merseyside’s Police Commissioner Emily Spurrell said: “One of my most important jobs is to hold the Chief Constable to account on the Force’s progress.

“It’s vitally important the public trust the police and can see that money and resources are being used widely to deliver the best possible service to keep our communities safe.

“The Chief Constable and I are both committed to involving local people in this process. We want to provide an open and honest platform for people to communicate with us and that’s why we will be dedicating some time at each of our quarterly Scrutiny Meetings to answer your questions.

“Your opinions really do count and by sharing them with us, you can help us to respond to local concerns and address issues directly.

“This is just one of the way I am looking to involve local people in the scrutiny and accountability processes and I would urge you to submit your questions. While I cannot guarantee every question submitted will be asked, this is an opportunity to raise your worries or concerns and to gain an insight into how Merseyside Police operates.”

The Police Commissioner’s Scrutiny Meetings will form part of a wider range of accountability arrangements which she plans to put in place over the coming months and will be in addition to her regular one-to-one meetings with the Chief Constable.

Details of how to live-stream the meeting will be released shortly.

How to ask a question

Please submit your questions by Thursday 26^th August 2021:

• Online at: https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/PCCScrutinyMeeting/
• Writing to:

Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner,

Mather Avenue Training Centre,

Mather Avenue,

Liverpool,

L18 9TG.

Questions which are received by this deadline and relate to the agenda will be asked by the Police Commissioner and addressed by Chief Officers.