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There are many agencies that focus on police reform and their work needs to be realised if the force is to develop and keep on top of crime in England and Wales. The Police and Justice Act was passed in 2006 and will help improve the quality of the police service in all areas of their operations from PCSOs to superintendents.
There are new policies and powers that have been introduced as part of this Act and these are varied by nature. Police forces can now hold their chief officer to account vicariously and the process of choosing members of the leadership team has also been updated. The Home Office has been granted the power to place responsibilities upon the police force by order and the police now have a duty to promote equality and diversity.
As part of this act, the National Policing Improvement Agency has been established to ensure a greater number of reforms and policy changes. This organisation was put in place to develop and improve the police service. It ensures the police force have the powers they need and also develops the use of new communication systems and better infrastructure. In addition to this, the agency sets target areas and helps the police force target the crimes that the public want to see dealt with. In this way, the National Policing Improvement Agency improves the service from the police force and ensures the needs of the community are met as fully as possible.
To add to these powers of reform, the Home Secretary now has the power to take action if any part of a police force is not meeting its agreed standards of service. This places a greater volume of pressure upon the forces in England and Wales to keep on top of the crime in their communities.
Other parts of the Police and Justice Act include a standard set of powers for police community support officers, vehicle stop and search laws, the confiscation of indecent photographs of children and even the ability to grant trading standards officers to issue fixed penalty notices. These are all designed to give police forces every new power they may need to improve their effectiveness in solving and preventing crime.
A new concept called the community call to action gives communities the power to get more from their police force. The community can call police to action on an issue regarding community safety that they may not have addressed well enough. This helps communities communicate with their police team and ensure that their needs are well met.
The police and justice Act gives more powers to the Home Office, the police force and members of all communities to protect themselves against the crime that is relevant to them. It allows greater freedom amongst the police forces and thus ensures that officers are far more able to enforce the law effectively. The Police and Justice Act ensures that all necessary powers are retained and the force can move forward.
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