Agenda item

1.    The Commissioner advised the Panel that he was pleased to have the opportunity to explain why mental health was such an important topic and why he was keen to focus on its relationship with Policing during his time as Commissioner.  He described mental health as the ‘golden thread’ of how he wants to improve policing, given that it is so heavily involved in a large amount of policing activity.  The Commissioner gave an example showing that dealing with one case of significant mental health issues could occupy two Police Constables for their entire shift, preventing them from dealing with other calls from the public or undertaking any kind of meaningful neighbourhood policing.  The Commissioner was concerned that the support and interventions for people suffering from mental health were available from the agencies responsible for providing them, but they do not have the capacity to meet the demand and manage the issues effectively.

2.    The Commissioner further explained that current estimates suggest that 33% of all police time is spent dealing with mental health issues.  To address this, he has already set up a system of employing representatives from the mental health charity, MIND, to work in the Force Control Room to offer support and assistance at the peak times for when such issues present.  The Commissioner explained that he had been working with partners across Kent and that the CEO of the Kent and Medway Partnership Trust is very committed to working with the Police on joint mental health plans.  Similarly, the Commissioner stated that he was planning to set up a Mental Health Board to link with partners both locally and nationally.  A capital bid has been submitted to the Department for Health (as part of a tranche of bids relating to s136) and that this will be supported through some revenue support from his office and the Clinical Commissioning Groups.

3.    To highlight the growing issue, the Commissioner advised that Panel that s136 detentions (where a person is detained on the grounds that their mental health presents a risk to themselves or others), are increasing year on year.  However, from 2017, Police custody cells would no longer be a legal option for such detention for adults except in extreme circumstances and never for children.  As a result, the responsible organisations would need to develop and manage legally compliant alternatives.  He explained that this would not mean that Kent Police had no involvement with working with people with mental health issues but he was encouraged that there were already many positive internal discussions taking place regarding improved plans for managing mental health better in terms of how it impacts on policing.

4.    The Panel welcomed the Commissioner’s initial thoughts on his Mental Health Strategy and expressed broad support, particularly the use of MIND staff in the Force Control Room at times of peak demand for mental health related police support.  It was suggested that the Commissioner should involve the Clinical Commissioning Groups as much as possible to share good practice and resources where possible, in addition to working on joint bids for funding.

5.    Responding to additional questions, the Commissioner explained that he was optimistic that close working with KMPT would help raise awareness of this key issue and attract support from relevant bodies.  Additionally, he advised the Panel that he was aware of the need for good training for Officers and staff on how to deal with mental health issues effectively, both in terms of members of the public but also in terms of supporting colleagues.  However, a key priority within this was improved demand management that ensured the Police were not the default service when other agencies more suited to dealing with mental health issues were not available.

RESOLVED that the Panel note the Commissioner’s update on mental health and that a further report be brought back to the Panel in 2017.