MOPAC decisions

• Date signed: Tuesday 12 March 2024
• Reference code: PCD 1631

The Mayor remains committed to tackling hate crime, as set out in his Police and Crime Plan 2022-25. He has pledged to champion diversity, promote integration, and stand in solidarity with all of London’s diverse communities against hatred and abuse; and work with partners to build community confidence and resilience to stand together against hate.  
This decision seeks the continuation of an annual £25,000 grant to pay for resources to enable London community-based events during National Hate Crime Awareness Week for the next three years, 2024/25 to 2026/27 at a total cost of £75,000.

• Date signed: Tuesday 12 March 2024
• Reference code: PCD 1628

This paper seeks approval for the award of a further single tender action for the provision of streamlined medical reports. The timely and accurate medical evidence obtained supports the judicial process and helps secure successful convictions and positive outcomes for victims. The proposed upto 4-year term of the contract is estimated at £2,880,000.

• Date signed: Tuesday 12 March 2024
• Reference code: PCD 1609

This paper seeks approval for the novation of the contract for Vehicle Conversion and Decommissioning services awarded to WN VTECH Ltd t/a VCS Police & Special Projects to Castilian 1 Limited (currently undergoing name change to Coleman Milne Ltd T/A VCS Police & Special Projects to maintain the continuity of service. The terms of the existing contract will be maintained. There are no financial implications arising from this proposal.

• Date signed: Tuesday 12 December 2023
• Reference code: PCD 1538

As outlined in the Mayor’s Tackling Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) Strategy 2022-2025, the Mayor has committed to exploring the feasibility of a pilot scheme in London to provide free, independent legal advice for victims on issues of privacy and data in relation to mobile phones and other devices, and in line with national recommendations in the London Rape Reviews.     

In February 2023, MOPAC commissioned the University of Glasgow to commence an 18-month Legal Advocacy Pilot in London (CEOD 14-2022 refers).  The agreement was made through a variation to the grant ‘Agreement for Operation Soteria Bluestone’ with an allocation of £70,000 to set up the pilot, with inclusion of the Women and Girls Network and Centre for Women’s Justice as subcontractors to the project.    

The pilot experienced a number of setbacks, primarily as a result of challenges in recruiting and retaining lawyers to the project. Furthermore there were challenges faced with appropriate referrals into the pilot.  In August 2023, following departure of the main lawyer, it was agreed that the pilot would pause and reflect, and consider how to improve the cost effectiveness of the pilot and build resilience into the workforce. A multi-agency partnership working group commenced and a proposed new model has been developed.    

This decision is seeking approval to provide additional funding of £148,500 to the project and to extend up until 30th June 2025.  The updated model will comprise of a single specialist hub made up of a small team in order to build specialist expertise in this new and niche area of law. The team will consist of two full-time lawyers, paralegal support, legal supervision and training, Counsel’s advice, and operational supervision and management. The pilot will provide support and representation for survivors, and also offer empirical testing of a) whether it is recommended for legal advice and representation to roll out nationally, and b) how any such advice and representation should be structured.  

• Date signed: Friday 8 March 2024
• Reference code: PCD 1439

In March 2022, the Mayor published his new Police and Crime Plan (PCP), and in June 2022, he published his refreshed Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) Strategy. The refreshed Mayor’s strategy sets out the commitment to supporting victims through the provision of essential specialist services. The Mayor has committed to maintaining investment in the London Sexual Assault Referral Centres (SARCs).
SARCs are specialist medical and forensic services available to anyone who has been raped or sexually assaulted, regardless of whether they choose to report the offence to the police. Their provision is a core function of Police and Crime Commissioners; and they are the only service that offers the forensic medical examinations, a specialist medical procedure which contributes to the criminal justice process as part of victims’ access to justice.
MOPAC co-commission with NHS England (NHSE) London’s Haven’s, who provide the SARC service across the capital. It is delivered by Kings College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, operates pan-London, and accepts referrals from the police and other professionals as well as self-referrals. The Havens operate from three hospital-based sites; Camberwell, Kensington and Whitechapel.
This decision seeks approval for MOPAC to continue this co-commissioning arrangement with NHSE and maintain its investment in the London Havens for financial year 2023-2024, to the value of up to £2,826,850.

• Date signed: Friday 8 March 2024
• Reference code: PCD 1607

The role of an Appropriate Adult (AA) is to safeguard the interests of a vulnerable adult suspected of a criminal offence, to ensure they are treated in a fair and just manner and are able to participate effectively in criminal proceedings. This aims to create equity for all those coming into custody. 
The current Appropriate Adult Funded Scheme comes to an end on the 31st October 2024. This decision requests approval for MOPAC to fund, procure and contract award a new Appropriate Adult Service for Vulnerable Adults in London from 1st November 2024 until 31st March 2027. Following an options appraisal commissioned by MOPAC in partnership with NHS, MOPAC would like to commission a Pan London service with the inclusion of, where appropriate, local volunteering schemes.
This decision requests approval to procure this service at a maximum value of £5,438,000, to contract award the highest scoring bidder/s following a procurement process. There will be the opportunity to extend until March 2029 at MOPAC’s discretion subject to confirmation of funding.

• Date signed: Thursday 9 November 2023
• Reference code: PCD 1526

In March 2022, the Mayor published his new Police and Crime Plan (PCP), and in June 2022, he published his refreshed Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) Strategy. These documents set out MOPAC’s strategic priorities for the remainder of the Mayoralty and represent a large and complex delivery programme.

A key VAWG Strategy commitment is to continue to work with partners, including the VAWG sector, to review how sexual violence service provision can better serve victims and survivors from all backgrounds and with diverse experiences; and how it can reflect learning from the thematic reviews. MOPAC is in the process of undertaking user-led sexual violence services redesign (CEOD 12-2022 refers), which will lead to the re-commissioning of these services in London.

Whilst this activity is ongoing and a comprehensive transition plan is developed to support the implementation of the new service model, MOPAC’s existing commissioned services will continue to provide the much needed specialist support for victim-survivors of sexual violence in London. This decision therefore seeks approval to extend these services and confirm funding allocations up until 31 March 2025.

The following 8 services have been identified as key programmes supporting the delivery of the Mayor’s ambition to tackle Violence Against Women and Girls and support victims and survivors:

The four London Rape Crisis Centres, covering North, South, East and West London

London Survivors Gateway, a partnership providing services for survivors of sexual violence

Survivors UK, specialist support for male victims of rape and sexual abuse

Galop, specialist support for LGBTQI+ victims of rape and sexual abuse

Havens Sexual Assault and Referral Centres (SARCs)

The total financial commitment for these 8 services in 2024/2025 will be £6,624,956, in line with 2023/24 budget provision.

• Date signed: Tuesday 12 December 2023
• Reference code: PCD 1585

The DMPC agree a request to settle a claim against the MPS, as set out in the part 2 report.

The Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime has the discretion to authorise the settlement of legal proceedings where it would be conducive to the maintenance of an efficient and effective police force.

• Date signed: Friday 16 February 2024
• Reference code: PCD 1584

MOPAC manages and co funds the Youth 2 Adult Hub, a pilot project which aims to reduce reoffending and improve outcomes for young adults on probation in Newham. This decision seeks approval to extend the Hub by 12 months to March 2025 by committing £250,000 in MOPAC funding and receiving £50,000 from the London Borough of Newham. This extension will also be supported by Probation, as they continue to commit resources to the hub and NHSE and HMPPS through the commitment of £50,000 from the Offender Personality Disorder (OPD) pathway to the hub wellbeing service.
The Y2A Hub has been operational since April 2022 and this extension provides an important window of opportunity to seek sustainable funding beyond March 2025 following receipt of evaluation reports.
Under the above funding the Hub will operate an adapted model with some services (accommodation, service user engagement and staff training) extended for 2 months while a funding bid and procurement process is undertaken for the remaining delivery period. £30,000 is to be granted under the MoU for the women co-commissioned service to the MoJ to allow for the continuation of dedicated provision for young women in Newham. £72,000 will be granted to NHSE to allow for the continuation of the wellbeing service.

• Date signed: Thursday 1 February 2024
• Reference code: PCD 1589

This paper seeks approval to accept a GLA offer of grant funding of £998,646 to undertake design stage work for the decarbonisation of Empress State Building (ESB), and to procure the necessary project management and technical design expertise.

• Date signed: Tuesday 5 March 2024
• Reference code: PCD 1644

The Violence Reduction Unit (VRU) has received enhanced funding from the Mayor of London. In February 2024, the Mayor announced a £6.5m package of additional funding to strengthen the work of London’s VRU to tackle violence and support our neighbourhoods across London. This decision sets out further programmatic activity and funding recommendations to support the ongoing and widely recognised work of the VRU in reaching children, families, communities and frontline professionals to achieve its core aims of reducing and preventing violence.
The additional investment included £3m for increased detached outreach to tackle robbery via a programme of street-based youth workers working after school hours to support and divert young people from robbery, exploitation and violence. The remaining 3.4m funding will boost the VRU's MyEnds community-led programmes across all 32 London boroughs, taking the learning and key principles of the MyEnds model to have that same presence in more areas of the city.
The VRU will create new investments in projects across London to tackle robbery as well as bolster current MyEnds programmes and offer funding across further areas of the city. This decision will therefore incorporate approval budget decisions to cover 2024-2026. 

• Date signed: Friday 1 March 2024
• Reference code: PCD 1604

This decision seeks approval to extend MOPAC’s GPS tagging provision until March 2026. This will include a two year extension to the GPS knife crime programme and a short extension to the domestic abuse pilot of no more than three months (after which we are advised that new MoJ provision will be in place to replace this). Additionally, a new GPS tagging pilot for Stalkers will also be introduced to run until March 2026. This extension is based on approval from the Secretary of State for Justice, which has now been obtained for this period.

• Date signed: Thursday 1 February 2024
• Reference code: PCD 1590

This paper seeks approval to invest upto £1,150,000 to replace the life expired roof at Block B of Larkhall Lane. The costs will be funded from within the existing approved capital Forward Works budget.

• Date signed: Friday 16 February 2024
• Reference code: PCD 1598

This paper seeks approval to accept Home Office grant funding of £1,487,500 for 2023/24 to support the NPCC Policing Productivity Review, the Delivery Landscape Reform Programme and the NPCC Digital, Data and Technology Coordination Committee. There is no financial exposure to MOPAC.

• Date signed: Thursday 15 February 2024
• Reference code: PD 1599

This paper seeks approval for the acceptance of Home Office grant funding of £2,450,000 in 2023/24, and up to £2,500,000 in 2024/25, to support the Joint Soteria Unit in implementing the roll out of the national operating model for the investigation of rape and other serious sexual offences (RAOSO)

• Date signed: Thursday 15 February 2024
• Reference code: PCD 1602

Since April 2022, the London Violence Reduction Unit (VRU) have received funding from the Youth Endowment Fund (YEF) for the delivery of the Your Choice programme. Your Choice provides high intensity CBT interventions to young people who have been assessed as vulnerable to violence and exploitation. In August 2023, The YEF announced that the programme had met the criteria to progress into a full randomised control trial (RCT). The RCT is a gold-standard evaluation and will enable the VRU to strengthen our understanding of the effectiveness of therapeutic interventions for children and young people at risk of harm. 30 local authorities will participate in this final phase of the programme.
This decision seeks permission to accept an uplift from the YEF by £100,000 for the delivery of the final phase of the programme and vary a grant agreement held with London Councils for the co-ordination of the Your Choice programme between August 2023 and March 2025. The VRU will also utilise funding from the YEF grant towards internal management costs.

• Date signed: Thursday 1 February 2024
• Reference code: PCD 1603

DMPC Decision PCD 1412 approved the procurement of Stalking Awareness Training to CJS Agencies. The successful provider, Strawberry Hill Ltd (St Mary’s University in collaboration with Alice Ruggles Trust) have been delivering training sessions to MPS, CPS and London Probation staff to improve awareness, identification and responses to stalking cases. This was a commitment within the Mayor’s VAWG Strategy.
This decision requests approval for the extension of the current contract from 03 February 2024 until 31st July 2024 and to uplift the contract by a maximum of £174,744. This extension and uplift will allow for the development of an e-learning training package to be developed for front line officers across the MPS. MPS will be providing funding to MOPAC for the majority of this contract extension.
The original tender for the delivery of the Stalking Awareness Training outlined pending funding confirmation the contract would be uplifted and extended to include this piece of work and therefore MOPAC are acting within procurement legislation. 

• Date signed: Friday 2 February 2024
• Reference code: PCD 1601

MOPAC play an important role in convening partners in the Youth Justice System to facilitate improvements to the system that sit across partnership agencies. To ensure that this work impacts on long-term change and to encourage active engagement from across the system, MOPAC have convened partners to start designing a shared ‘vision’ for youth justice in London, which will include agreeing shared outcomes, understanding and focus. To ensure that the ‘vision’ is shaped by the needs and experiences of children and young adults with experience of the youth justice system, this decision asks for approval to procure a provider to convene a group of 8-10 children and young adults to co-develop and co-produce a shared youth justice system vision for London.
This work has a maximum value of £15,000 over its lifetime and the contract will allow for up to 6 months of delivery. Procurement will involve an Invitation to Quote open to at least 3 providers, full evaluation and moderation will take place to choose the successful provider.

• Date signed: Thursday 15 February 2024
• Reference code: PCD 1618

In June 2022, MOPAC agreed to jointly fund the Pan London Information Governance Lead alongside London Office of Technology and Innovation and Metropolitan Police.
The Lead supports data sharing between London boroughs and the Metropolitan Police. They have also established data sharing agreements, acted as a trusted advisor and conducted research on behalf of the funding organisations.
Further funding for the next three years (2024-27) has been requested to continue the role.
The funding required will be £115,210 in 2024/25, and £123,982 in 2025/26 and £113,630 in 2026/27.
This decision seeks approval for the MOPAC portion of this funding.

• Date signed: Friday 1 March 2024
• Reference code: PCD 1616

 Operation Soteria is a national programme to transform the policing response to rape. This decision refers to the period when MOPAC hosted the programme. Circumstances around certain payments previously covered by DMPC 980/2022 have now been subject to considerable change that a new decision is required to enable payments to be made to institutions who have contributed to this Programme.
NPCC Programme Leads and Finance have cleared this report and the finance implications (£22,000 from NPCC Home Office Grant in 2023/24).