Project Alpha Social Media Hub Continued Home Office Funding 2021/2022

The purpose of this decision is to seek approval to accept additional Home Office funding which has been made available for the financial year 21/22 for the Project Alpha Social Media Hub in order to deliver an enhanced capability to tackle gang related violence and serious and organised crime.

MOPAC approval has already been secured to accept a Grant of £2m from the HO to fund Project Alpha - Social Media Hub in 2021/22 PCD 960 refers. The Home Office have now made a further £1.17m available to fund an additional uplift of 12 staff further enhancing the project’s capability.

The Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime is recommended to approve acceptance of additional Home Office funding of £1,170,000 to fund a staff uplift that will enhance the Project Alpha Social Media Hub capability during the 21/22 financial year.

1. Introduction and background

1.1. As traditional communication data fragments with the introduction of new technology and communication providers, Social Media is becoming an ever-increasing key element within gang related violence and serious organised crime that includes County Lines. This is relevant throughout London and across the UK.

1.2. With the proliferation of social media as a method of communication, there is a clear business need to develop new solutions to meet increasing demands.

1.3. The scale of the current complex risks posed by gangs in relation to the exposure of young people and the vulnerable to violence, criminal and sexual exploitation is extensive and affects every police force area.

1.4. There is a need for increased collaboration within law enforcement and with industry providers to deliver a better understanding of the scale and risks and develop solutions collaboratively.

1.5. The Social Media Hub is already operating during the current financial year with Home Office funding.

2. Issues for consideration

2.1. MOPAC approval has been secured to accept £2m from the Home Office to support the Project Alpha – Social Media Hub in 2021/22 (PCD960 refers). This further Grant offer of £1.17m provides additional Home Office funding to enhance the existing Project Alpha - Social Media Hub as an innovative and dedicated capability with demonstrated success in tackling gang violence and serious organised crime over the previous 2 years. The funding will secure an increase in establishment from 22 to 34 officers. The Hub maintains the support of DAC Graham McNulty as the NPCC gangs lead.

2.2. The original planned team uplift to 22 staff allowed for the use of existing office space provided within the MO2 and MO3 estates as it did not increase current desk allocation due to the adoption of a new shift pattern and agile working practices across the team. As a consequence of the increase to 34 staff various estate options have been examined and additional space has been made available at the current location.

2.3. The work the Social Media Hub undertakes directly impacts upon gang violence and the serious organised crime perpetuated by urban street gangs/Organised Crime Groups. It will also seek to reduce the criminal and sexual exploitation of young people.

3. Financial Comments

3.1. The funding will support an additional 12 staff who will be posted to the Project Alpha Internet Intelligence and Investigations Team, whilst the existing Covert Policing team will remain unchanged. The conditions on which the Home Office has made this grant relate to direct pay costs with the addition of overtime, plus training and equipment specific to the role. MPS support costs are not included.

3.2. The funding will be recovered through the submission of a quarterly return to the Home Office consistent with terms and conditions offered by the Home Office in previous Grant Agreements to fund Project Alpha.

3.3. At the end of the 21/22 funding period and if no further funding is made available, there will be a phased exit strategy for staff to transition back into existing MPS posts.

3.4. A full breakdown of the costs is contained within restricted section of the report.

4. Legal Comments

4.1. The Home Office will pay the Grant to MOPAC in exercise of the power conferred by Section 56 of the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act (2004).

4.2. The acceptance of this additional grant funding is permitted under Schedule 3, Paragraph 7 of the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 which provides that,

7(1) The Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime may do anything which is calculated to facilitate, or is conducive or incidental to, the exercise of the functions of the Office.

(2) That includes—

(a) entering into contracts and other agreements (whether legally binding or not);

4.3. Paragraph 4.8 of the MOPAC Scheme of Consent and Delegation provides the DMPC has delegated authority to approve all offers made of grant funding.

4.4. There are no legal reasons as to why this offer of additional grant funding cannot be accepted.

4.5. The grant agreement will be published pursuant to The Elected Local Policing Bodies (Specified Information) (Amendment) Order 2012.

5. GDPR and Data Privacy

5.1. The MPS is subject to the requirements and conditions placed on it as a 'State' body to comply with the European Convention of Human Rights and the Data Protection Act (DPA) 2018. Both legislative requirements place an obligation on the MPS to process personal data fairly and lawfully in order to safeguard the rights and freedoms of individuals.

5.2. Under Article 35 of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and Section 57 of the DPA 2018, Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIA) become mandatory for organisations with technologies and processes that are likely to result in a high risk to the rights of the data subjects.

5.3. A Data Protection Impact Assessment has been completed. The project will ensure a privacy by design approach, which will allow the MPS to find and fix problems at the early stages of any project, ensuring compliance with GDPR. DPIAs support the accountability principle, as they will ensure the MPS complies with the requirements of GDPR and they demonstrate that appropriate measures have been taken to ensure compliance. The DPIA concluded the risk of a data breach occurring was LOW based on current practices. Recommendations regarding data storage and retention have been followed with the use of the MPS approved BOX data storage solution and an updated data retention policy.

6. Equality Comments

6.1. This business case has undergone a full Equalities Impact Assessment. Due regard has been taken to the Equality Act’s Public Sector Equality Duty under Sec 149 of the Equality Act 2010. Consideration has been taken to assess equality impact caused by the proposed business change including effective engagement and analysing relevant equality information. As a result, no negative impact has been identified to any individual at this stage.

7. Background/supporting papers

7.1. MOPAC approval (PCD960) has previously been secured to accept £2m from the Home Office to support the Project Alpha – Social Media Hub in 2021/22.