Select Committee on Public Accounts Fourth Report


2 Communication with customers

Communicating delays

9. The Agency's January 2000 customer satisfaction survey of over 2,000 police officers identified the Agency's failure to notify them when an agreed delivery date was likely to be missed as one of the three top priority areas for improvement.[16] When asked how many court cases have been delayed because of forensic analysis being unavailable, the Agency did not know. The Agency said that, in some cases, it had little control over deadlines, for example when the police submitted further materials close to the agreed delivery date. It was, however, now aspiring to communicate all delays to customers, although did not specify a target date. Since the C&AG's Report, it had established a new system of electronic communication with police forces to facilitate better dialogue with forces on the progress of individual cases.[17]

Impact on the criminal justice system

10. The Agency is not routinely informed of the outcome of cases in which it has been involved. For example, it is not informed by the police or Crown Prosecution Service when charges are not going to be brought against a suspect, nor whether a prosecution resulted in a conviction or an acquittal.[18] The Agency acknowledged that, without such feedback on the outcomes of investigations and prosecutions, it could not effectively assess the value of its work.[19]

11. The exception is where the Agency works on specific projects with individual police forces. One such example is the Burglary Reduction Initiative in Leeds, a partnership project between the Agency and West Yorkshire Police which resulted in some 80 prosecutions. The Agency provided rapid analysis of DNA found at burglary scenes and seconded a forensic scientist to West Yorkshire police to follow progress of DNA matches through the investigative process.[20] The Agency also cited the Safer Homes partnership project with West Midlands Police, which had reduced burglary across the region by 17%. The Agency said that it had found such partnership projects to be highly valuable and would welcome more regular feedback from its customers.[21]

Police training

12. The Agency provides training to customers to promote their awareness of the value of forensic analysis in criminal investigations and prosecutions. It contributes to national police training courses and provides training directly to individual forces as and when they request it. Only half of police forces undertook such training in 2001-02. When surveyed in March 2002, forces who had undertaken Agency training considered that it had fallen short of expectations in a number of areas, for example the language used being too technical for non-scientists. The Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) commented in 2003 that a much greater awareness of the value of forensic analysis is required within the police and it has set up a working group to address this issue.[22]

13. The Agency stated that it had taken steps to improve the quality and take-up of its training. It was planned that a forensic scientist would be seconded to the National Centre for Policing Excellence for six months to rewrite the police's forensic science manual. The Agency had also worked closely with the Police Standards Unit to better understand customer requirements. The impact of its training had not, however, been evaluated, for example by comparing the performance of those forces receiving training to those who had not. The Agency was also aware that not all police Scene of Crime Officers had received its training. Whether they did so was ultimately a decision for Chief Constables.[23]

Relationship with the police

14. England and Wales differ from other countries in that the provision of forensic science is through a dedicated agency. Police forces in other countries retain a level of internal capability for forensic science work generally greater than that in England and Wales. The closest model is in the Netherlands, where the National Forensics Laboratory is moving towards agency status. In the US, there is some outsourcing of DNA analysis to the private sector.[24]

15. The Agency has Joint Letters of Understanding with 42 of the 43 police forces in England and Wales. (The exception is the Metropolitan Police Service). These are not binding on either party but are a means by which the Agency can better understand its customers' likely requirements for the coming year. The Metropolitan Police Service has chosen, after a high-level independent review, to establish a more commercial relationship with the Agency and other forensic science providers.[25]

16. The Agency considers that one of its greatest challenges is to understand the specific requirements of individual police forces. In 2003, it had been engaged in lengthy discussions with the Metropolitan Police Service and, as a result, had developed a much better understanding of the force's requirements in the areas of armed criminality, homicide and burglary. The Agency intended to undergo a similar process with the other 42 police forces, with the intention of moving from a national price list to 43 bespoke services which would more closely meet the requirements of individual police forces. The Agency considered that it would be possible for a police force to develop a comprehensive customer service agreement with a private sector company.[26]


16   C&AG's Report, para 2.17 Back

17   Qq 50, 86-91 Back

18   C&AG's Report, para 2.30 Back

19   Q 19 Back

20   C&AG's Report, para 2.25 Back

21   Qq 11-12, 134 Back

22   C&AG's Report, paras 2.38-2.42 Back

23   Qq 55, 92-94, 126-142 Back

24   C&AG's Report, para 1.17 Back

25   ibid, para 2.21 Back

26   Qq 42-45, 59 Back


 
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Prepared 27 January 2004