Evaluation of police and fire reform year 4: international perspectives

1 Introduction

1.1 Background on the evaluation

The evaluation of police and fire reform in Scotland began in February 2015 and has been undertaken by the Scottish Institute for Policing Research (SIPR), ScotCen Social Research and What Works Scotland.

The main aims of this evaluation are to:

• Assess the extent to which the three aims of the Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act, as set out in the policy memorandum accompanying the Act, appear to have been met, namely:

i. To protect and improve local services despite financial cuts, by stopping duplication of support services eight times over and not cutting front line services

ii. To create more equal access to specialist support and national capacity - like murder investigation teams, firearms teams or flood rescue - where and when they are needed

iii. To strengthen the connection between services and communities, by creating a new formal relationship with each of the 32 local authorities, involving many more local councillors and better integrating with community planning partnerships.

• Identify lessons from the implementation of reform that might inform the process of future public service reform.
• Evaluate the wider impact of the reform on the Justice system and the wider public sector.

The Year 1 report of the evaluation was published in June 2016 and comprised a Summary Report^[1] and Evidence Review^[2]. It focused on findings emerging from the initial two stages of the work (i) a review of publicly available evidence up to the end of 2015 and (ii) national key informant interviews. 

The Year 2 report of the evaluation was published in August 2017 and comprised a Main Report^[3] and an Annex^[4]. It focused on findings from four geographical case studies in Scotland which examined local experiences and perceptions of the way police and fire and rescue services are being delivered in local communities. In addition, a two-page infographic summary was produced to highlight the key findings.

Year 3 has produced a series of publications; the first was published in February 2018 and comprised a Main Report focusing on findings from a thematic case study on partnership working, prevention and innovation.^[5] The second report was published in May 2018 and included findings from interviews conducted with the National Key Informants who had taken part in Year 1 of the evaluation and a Summary of Evidence for 2017^[6]. In addition a two-page infographic summary was produced to highlight the key findings from the research.

1.2 Aims of the international perspectives work

Throughout the evaluation, the research team has been undertaking knowledge exchange with international partners to understand different experiences of police and fire reform across Europe. 

It is important to acknowledge, however, that the origins of this international comparative perspective pre-date the evaluation and include:

• Work undertaken by Fyfe and Mendel commissioned by the Scottish Government’s Sustainable Policing Project in 2011 reviewing international evidence of police mergers and amalgamations. This report was subsequently published as Mendel, J., Fyfe, N. and den Heyer, G. (2016) ‘Does police force size matter? A review of the evidence regarding the restructuring of police organisations’, Police Practice and Research, 18(1), 3-14.;
• An International Summit on police reform held in 2011 organised by the Scottish Government at which representatives from a range of northern European countries spoke about the experience of reform to an audience of local and Scottish Government officials, elected members, and police officers drawn from the eight legacy forces;
• A body of academic research on police reform led by Fyfe and Terpstra which has examined the drivers, implementation and consequences of reform across several countries and has been published in a range of academic and professional journals as well as in a book: Fyfe, N.R., Terpstra, J. and Tops, P. (eds.) (2013) Centralizing forces? Comparative perspectives on contemporary police reform in northern and western Europe (Eleven Publishing, The Hague).

In terms of activities undertaken during the evaluation, international seminars were held in Edinburgh in November 2016 and October 2018 attended by colleagues from Scotland as well as Belgium, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. These seminars captured many of the similarities and differences in reform in these countries compared with the Scottish experience. 

To build on this knowledge and understanding, this report:

• presents findings from the fourth year of the evaluation which examines international experiences of organisational change in police and fire services and reflects what this means for Police Scotland and the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS), as well as wider public services in Scotland. 
• focuses on the themes of strengthening connections to local communities, in particular, partnership working and prevention, with respect to police services; and on reconfiguring the role of fire services in an era of changing demands due to the risk of terrorism, changing weather patterns and the reduction in fires over the longer term.

1.3 Methodology

The approach used to examine international perspectives was similar to that used in the Year 2 geographical case studies and Year 3 thematic case studies for partnership, innovation and prevention. Case study areas were chosen from across the world - four for police and four for fire – and were chosen in consultation with Police Scotland, Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, Scottish Policing Authority, HM Inspectorate of Constabulary in Scotland and HM Fire Service Inspectorate in Scotland. 

Building on existing comparative work (see, for example, Fyfe, Terpstra and Tops, 2013)^[7], the reasons for choosing the case study areas are outlined below.

Police:

• Netherlands: a very similar trajectory and timetable relating to police reform as Scotland therefore, learning from the experience of reform would be relevant to Scotland.
• Norway: very similar to Scotland in terms of population size and geography and aims of reform. Norway has had a national policing structure since the 1930s but is undergoing significant reform to policing structures aimed at strengthening local connections via reductions in numbers of police districts.
• New Zealand: similar size and geography to Scotland with a national police force, and on a similar public service reform trajectory focused on prevention.
• Manchester, England: reform in England and Wales has taken a different trajectory where they have preserved the local structure of policing and introduced new forms of governance through the Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) but have seen an erosion of officer and civilian numbers due to budget pressures. Learning from a contrasting reform experience was agreed to be of value because it illustrates a different approach to responding to similar financial challenges. 

Fire:

• Netherlands: Fire and Rescue Services were reformed between 2004 and 2014 resulting in over 400 municipal Fire and Rescue Services being reorganised into 25 Fire and Rescue Service regions.
• New Zealand: similar size and geography to Scotland. The Fire and Rescue Service in New Zealand reformed into a single organisation in July 2017.
• West Midlands, England: large metropolitan area which has some similarities to areas in Scotland in terms of scale and geography.
• Alberta, Canada: similar geography to Scotland, interesting examples of prevention activity.

1.4 Data collection

To examine the different international perspectives, qualitative telephone interviews were conducted with representatives from the police and fire services in the case study areas between June and September 2018. The interviews focused on the key themes of:

• the relationship with local communities
• partnership working
• prevention
• measuring impact and outcomes
• lessons learned. 

The police interviews included organisation of local policing and the fire interviews included the role of the local firefighter. 

One participant from each area was asked to answer scoping questions either via a telephone interview (n=3) or email (n=5). The scoping questions were answered before the main interviews to provide an overview of the structure of the services, shape and size of the workforce and details of any organisational change that has occurred.

The scale of reform is different in each country with some experiencing mid-level reform rather than major organisational restructuring. The interviews provided an opportunity to map the different experiences of reform and the widening of the fire service role internationally. Interviewees were asked to provide, where possible, reports and evaluations of the key themes explored in the interviews which are available in English. 

In total across the case study areas 29 interviews were conducted with practitioners and representatives from policy and academia, all chosen due to their knowledge of the key topics. It should be noted that this is a relatively small number of interviews and the aim of the report is to reflect a range of different views and experiences of reform across the different case study areas. The focus of the report is to represent these different perceptions of the impact and challenges that reform has presented to the different services. Interviews were conducted with the following:

• Police interviewees (senior officers from superintendent level to deputy chiefs, government officials and academics) n=15
• Fire interviewees (senior fire officers, government officials and association of fire chiefs) n=14

Ethical approval for the international perspectives element of the evaluation was obtained from NatCen Social Research (NatCen) Ethics Committee. Access to the interviewees was arranged through a named contact in each case study area. Interviewees were invited to take part via an email from the research team and a convenient time was arranged to conduct the interview. 

Prior to the interviews, interviewees were supplied with key topics they were going to be asked to discuss, to ensure they had time to prepare and reflect before the interview, particularly for interviewees where English was not their first language. All interviews were conducted in English. 

Verbal consent was recorded before commencing interviews. With the consent of participants, the interviews were digitally recorded and transcribed verbatim. All interview data were stored securely, with access limited to the research team and all procedures relating to data handling and retention are in line with GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) requirements. Interview data were coded with NVivo, a software package for qualitative data analysis, using an analytical framework based on the key themes discussed by interviewees. This system of coding facilitates the organisation and analysis of qualitative transcripts and provides a tool to explore the range and diversity of views expressed by participant. 

1.5 Structure of the report

This report provides an examination of the themes and findings from the international perspectives work, and has four main components: 

(i) international experience of organisational change in policing

(ii) international experience of organisational change in fire services 

(iii) wider lessons from the international experience of organisational change in policing and fire services

(iv) appendices outlining each case study area including background and context of organisational change.

1.6 Background to reform in each of the case study areas 

1.6.1 Police

To provide some background context for the analysis that follows, below is a summary table of the police services in the four case study areas. Although data were not collected from a Scottish perspective for this report, Scotland is included in the table to add some further context. The table includes documentary material on (rounded) population size, policing numbers, current structure and the aims of reform derived from published sources and interviews. 

Police service	Greater Manchester	Netherlands	New Zealand	Norway	Scotland
Citizen population	2.8 million	17.2 million	4.8 million	5.3 million	5.4 million
Total number of police officers and civilian staff	10,000+ (officers=6,237, volunteers=512, police community support officers (PCSO)=606, support=2,961)	65,000  (aggregate number of officers and staff)	12,000+ (aggregate number of officers and staff)	16,000  (of which 9,000 are police officers, rest civilians	22,753[8]  (of which 17,251 are police officers, rest civilians)
Number of officers and civilian staff per head of (rounded) population	1 / 280	1 / 265	1 / 400	1 / 331	1/237
When reform started	2012	2013	2011	2001, 2012/13	2013
Structure	10 local districts mirror Local Authorities. 4 Chief superintendents, 10 superintendents (1 for each district). Moving towards the integration of the neighbourhood policing function alongside other public services that deliver at a neighbourhood level.	A single national police force with 10 regional police districts (reduced from 25). Management and administration are centralised. National department for special police tasks.	Single national police service. There are 12 districts, 9 in the North Island and 3 in the South. These districts vary greatly in the geographical area they cover.	A single national police force with 12 police districts. Each district is led by a chief of police and within these districts there are police stations in urban areas and sheriffs’ offices in rural areas.	The Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act 2012 brought together the eight police forces, the Scottish Police Services Authority (SPSA) and the Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency (SCDEA) into two new national bodies; the Scottish Police Authority (SPA) and the Police Service of Scotland.
Aim of reform	Aim of reform was to integrate public services, functions and structures across Greater Manchester so they are delivered more effectively and efficiently. This includes responding to and reducing demand for public services at a local level by building on community assets and addressing the root causes of demand.	The aim of reform was to improve capacity to address emerging and more complex forms of criminality and to improve police infrastructure at a national level (e.g. computer system).	The aim of police reform was to move towards a ‘prevention first’ operating model and to achieve this there was an aim to build stronger relationships with local communities.	The aim of police reform in 2001 was to increase efficiency by restructuring. The number of police districts reduced from 54 to 27 and the number of police stations also reduced. Reform in 2012/13 was in response to criticism to leadership and culture of police after 2011 terrorist attack. Reform had 6 wide aims.	The aim of reform was threefold: I. To protect and improve local services despite financial cuts by reducing duplication of support services; II. To create more equal access to specialist support and national capacity where and when they are needed; III. To strengthen the connection between services and communities.

1.6.2 Fire

To provide some background context for the analysis that follows, below is a summary table of the fire and rescue services in the four case study areas. Although data were not collected from a Scottish perspective for this report, Scotland is included in the table to add some further context. The table includes documentary material on (rounded) population size, firefighter numbers, current structure and the aims of organisational change derived from published sources and interviews. 

Fire service	Canada	Netherlands	New Zealand	West Midlands	Scotland
Citizen population	35.5 million	17.2 million	4.8 million	2.89 million	5.4 million
Total number of firefighters and support staff	152,650 (83% volunteers)	28,214 (volunteers= 19,106 career=5,212 support staff=3,896)	13,029 (Urban volunteers= 8,161,  rural volunteers= 3,134, Career= 1,734)	1,900	7,776[9] 3546 Whole time Operational, 2863 Retained Duty System (and 332 volunteers), 846 Support staff, 189 Control staff.
Number of firefighters and support staff per head of (rounded) population	1 / 233	1 / 610	1 / 368	1 / 1,521	1 / 694
When reform started	N/A	2004	2017	N/A	2013
Structure	Fire services operate at a municipal level, so the structure of each service is different in each municipality. At a national level the Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs in an independent elected voluntary body comprised of fire chiefs from municipalities.	Between 2004 and 2014, 400-450 fire services were  re-organised into 25 fire services regions. In 2011 this structure became the law.	National Fire and Emergency service was established from merging the New Zealand Fire Service, the National Rural Fire Authority and 38 rural fire organisations.	38 fire stations under the control of Chief Fire Officer and the Strategic Enabling Team who oversee the structure of the service and its strategic direction.	The Scottish Fire and Rescue service was formed on 1st April 2013 by merging the 8 existing regional fire service in Scotland.
Aim of reform	N/A The fire service has not been nationalised because of the complexity of federal, provincial and municipal government structures and population distribution (sparse).	In recognition To ensure that all municipalities, regardless of size, can respond to all types of major incident and promote greater coordination between public services (police, medical and municipal).	To improve service at a community level through the creation of a single, unified service with coordinated leadership that can allocate resources effectively.	In recognition of the changing role of firefighters, new modified contracts were introduced that stipulate the role includes prevention, protection, response and wider health work[10].	The aim of fire service reform was threefold: I. To protect and improve local services despite financial cuts by reducing duplication of support services; II. To create more equal access to specialist support and national capacity where and when they are needed; III. To strengthen the connection between services and communities.